Hyperfixation is an intense fixation on certain activities or interests, but can include eating habits, too. This means some people may only eat a specific food or meal for a while, before becoming tired of it and moving on to a different food or meal.
Experts believe that people with ADHD may overeat to satisfy their brain's need for stimulation. Also, problems with executive function can make self-control and self-regulation difficult. Inattention can also be a factor. People with ADHD may not be as aware of or focused on their eating habits.
Those with ADHD may be likely to forget to eat and to binge later. They may also have trouble planning and shopping ahead, which can result in spur-of-the-moment and uncontrolled eating.
ADHD and Sensory Processing Disorder
Signals for hunger, thirst, pain, sleepiness, and toileting may not come naturally to kids with ADHD. While it is widely accepted that poor interoception can lead to food aversions and under eating, it may also contribute to misinterpreting different bodily signals as hunger.
Hyperfocus refers to an intense fixation on an interest or activity for an extended period of time. People who experience hyperfocus often become so engrossed they block out the world around them. Children and adults with ADHD often exhibit hyperfocus when working intently on things that interest them.
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) has been shown to be an effective treatment for ADHD and can help to reduce the intensity of hyperfixations. CBT helps patients to identify and change negative thought patterns and behaviors. In addition, CBT teaches patients how to manage their time, set goals, and stay organized.
People with ADHD have lower levels of dopamine. As such, they may be more “wired” to seek dopamine out. Since eating simple carbohydrates (such as high-sugar foods) triggers a rush of dopamine in the brain, this may be why people with ADHD tend to hyperfixate or binge on these foods.
Picky eating is one of the most common phases in young children, but for children with ADHD (attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder), picky eating might be even more prevalent. Additionally, some kids with ADHD may go hours without eating.
Amphetamines and ADHD
Government statistics show that 75% of children diagnosed with ADHD are on a treatment plan consisting of amphetamine-based drugs. Amphetamines, as in related to meth. Now those drugs come in a delicious, orange-flavored Pixie-Stix tablet form.
People with ADHD are at an increased risk for eating disorders, including bulimia, anorexia nervosa, and binge eating. However, research has been focused on binge eating specifically, due to the large number of people with both ADHD and a binge eating disorder.
So intuition around eating is fairly ineffective here. It is more effective for ADHDers to use external reminders to eat consistently. Phone reminders/alarms work great for this. Set a timer for every 3-4 hours to remind yourself to take a break from what you're doing and eat a snack or meal.
Hyperfixation happens when you're completely engrossed by something, to the point where it becomes all-consuming and disrupts your day-to-day functioning. It gets hard to focus on anything other than the object of your hyperfixation. You can become hyperfixated on a hobby, interest, person, place, etc.
There is growing evidence of a relationship between ADHD and eating disorders, particularly binge-eating behaviors (such as seen in BED and BN).
Since kids with ADHD have chronically low levels of dopamine, they are more likely than other kids to crave and eat sugary or carbohydrate-heavy foods. On top of this, their impulsive tendencies make it hard for them to stop eating these foods even when they are full.
These people tend to shift their interest from one food to the other. Hyperfixation on food is a more evident sign of ADHD. People with Hyperfixation on food may not be necessarily hyperactive. However, they are likely to exhibit symptoms of inattentiveness.
People with SCT have trouble focusing and paying attention, but they're less likely to be impulsive or hyperactive.
Hyperfixation, also referred to as hyperfocus, is commonly connected with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), anxiety, obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), autism, and depression.
Follow the personalized Neurodevelopmental Movement Program developed by your specialist. This will often reduce or remove the person's need to hyperfixate and enable them to focus on more productive things. It usually takes only a few months to see noticeable improvements.
Food neophobia is generally regarded as the reluctance to eat, or the avoidance of, new foods. In contrast, 'picky/fussy' eaters are usually defined as children who consume an inadequate variety of foods through rejection of a substantial amount of foods that are familiar (as well as unfamiliar) to them.
OCD and Binge Eating Disorder
While there is a compulsive quality to BDD, it's not the same as OCD. People with BDD compulsively eat large amounts of food and feel unable to stop themselves. While this may be a response to stress, binge eating Someone can certainly have OCD and BDD.
Many people use food as a coping mechanism to deal with such feelings as stress, boredom or anxiety, or even to prolong feelings of joy. While this may help in the short term, eating to soothe and ease your feelings often leads to regret and guilt, and can even increase the negative feelings.