What are the dangers of hyperactivity in a child?

Hyperactivity in children creates the most problems in kindergarten and then in school. Scientists claim that no other feature of a child's brain activity causes so much trouble for him and those around him. Meanwhile, the reasons for hyperactivity in children are very diverse: they concern not only upbringing, but also depend on nutrition, and on how well the mother's pregnancy went, and even... on the material wealth of the family. More about hyperactivity in children and what to do about it.

What is hyperactivity?

Hyperactivity, as doctors say, is a condition in which a person is overly excitable and active. If a child's hyperactivity prevents his environment from existing normally, we are talking about psychological deviations. Hyperactivity is most typical for preschool children, because their nervous system is still very unstable, and the child is overly vulnerable and susceptible at this time.

Boys suffer from hyperactivity four times more often than girls. There is an explanation for this: boys are larger than girls at birth, so they are more likely to suffer injuries and damage at birth. In addition, the brain of boys matures later than the brain of girls. Therefore, schoolboys are more prone to hyperactivity in the future than girls, ahead of the weaker sex. In total, up to 10% of hyperactive children are registered among schoolchildren - not so little.

The first symptoms of hyperactivity can be identified as early as two years of age. This is evident in the child's behavior: he makes abrupt movements, can talk a lot and often or speak with a stutter, move more actively than his peers. A child with signs of hyperactivity may also suffer from enuresis.

Hyperactivity syndrome (there is such a thing!) is most pronounced at the age of 6. Parents do not immediately realize it and take their child to the doctor much later: at 8-10 years. This is explained by the fact that at a younger age, parents attribute their son or daughter's hyperactivity to simple pampering or simply do not pay attention to it. Hyperactivity syndrome usually decreases in its course and severity by the age of 14 - at this age, children become more responsible, begin to value their own "I" more.

What are the causes of a child's hyperactivity?

The causes of hyperactivity are very diverse and can be explained by biological, psychological, physiological factors, as well as the costs of education.

Birth injuries

Difficult labor of the mother, birth injuries, problems of intrauterine development - all these are the reasons for the child's hyperactivity, because first of all, its brain suffers. If the child experienced oxygen starvation in the mother's womb, this can affect its entire future life and behavior, because some parts of the brain develop incorrectly. Therefore, the mother must take great care of herself during pregnancy so that the pregnancy proceeds without complications.

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Big age difference between parents

This is also a reason for the child's hyperactivity. According to research, a child with hyperactivity can be born to couples with a large age difference. A union is considered dangerous if the mother is under 19 and the father is over 39. That is, a difference in the age of the mother and father of more than 30 years can be the cause of the child's hyperactivity syndrome. The second reason concerning the compatibility of couples is the Rh factor of the blood, which can be incompatible. Most often, such blood incompatibility can occur with a negative blood group in the mother and a positive one in the father.

Lead poisoning

No, this does not mean that you feed your child lead and he develops hyperactivity. Lead can be contained in food or it occurs due to a deficiency of other microelements. In particular, magnesium. With a magnesium deficiency, lead accumulates in the child's body, and doctors have long recognized it as a harmful metal. The child's nervous system is upset due to the accumulation of lead, since this microelement is a powerful neurotoxin, that is, it causes poisoning. Lead in high doses in the child's body can impair memory and attentiveness, affect adequate perception of everything around. And, of course, the child's behavior.

Poor diet of the child

Pediatricians unanimously say that improper nutrition can cause serious deviations in a child's behavior. In particular, it can provoke hyperactivity. The most dangerous products for a child are those that contain a lot of chemicals. These are products with flavors, colorants, fillers, softeners, and so on. They cause changes in the brain and can provoke excessive aggressiveness or, conversely, passivity.

A product that provokes an allergy and, consequently, biochemical changes in the body can also be dangerous for a child.

Heredity

It is not surprising that a child is hyperactive if his parents were also hyperactive in childhood. Up to 60% of preschoolers whose parents suffered from hyperactive behavior will copy it. You can't argue with genes!

Financial status of the family

In our country, neither television nor psychological literature emphasizes the everyday problems of the family as the cause of health. Therefore, we can take into account the research of Western scientists King and Noshpich, who write about the connection between the material status of the family and the consequences of physiological deviations. So, scientists write that in families with high incomes, the consequences of difficult childbirth, which entailed deviations in the health of the fetus, are reduced or even disappear by the time the child goes to school. Such a pattern is not observed in those children whose parents barely make ends meet.

Attention deficit

Psychologists claim that hyperactivity and attention deficit are a very common pair. Children, experiencing a lack of attention and love from adults, often show hyperactivity in order to attract the attention of parents and teachers, to stand out.

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How to identify hyperactivity in a child?

To make sure whether a child's behavior is normal or whether he or she has hyperactivity syndrome, you need to identify at least 6 behavioral signs out of the nine listed above.

For psychological hyperactivity

1. The child is inattentive, he cannot concentrate on anything for a long time, does not notice obvious details
2. The child is unable to perform the same task for a long time and does not complete any task
3. The child does not listen attentively to adults or his peers; those who speak to him have the impression that the child does not hear the address to him
4. The preschooler cannot organize his activities correctly and jumps from one activity to another
5. The preschooler has no desire to solve any intellectual problems; he is against mental stress.
6. The child often loses things and is disorganized.
7. A preschooler is very quickly distracted by extraneous noises; the slightest source of light or sound can immediately switch his attention from an important activity.
8. The child often forgets basic things

Physical manifestations of increased hyperactivity

1. When a child is anxious, he may move frequently and quickly while sitting or even standing.
2. The child often jumps up from his seat
3. The child can run and jump very quickly and does not sit still for long.
4. The child is constantly physically active
5. At school or kindergarten, such a child may jump up and down, make noise, scream, and shout down others.
6. The child cannot participate in quiet games
7. The child answers faster than the question is asked.
8. A preschooler is not able to sit or stand in line, wait to be invited somewhere
9. The child often interferes in the conversation of others, interrupting everyone in mid-sentence. There is also a mixed type of hyperactivity, in which both psychological and physiological signs can be observed.

How to cope with hyperactivity in a preschooler?

The biological peculiarity of the brain is that it is formed up to the age of 12. This means that up to the age of 12, a child should be protected from stress, since under stress, irreversible changes can occur in some areas of the child's brain.

The child also needs to be protected from the development of various diseases, at first glance, not related to neurology. These may be kidney problems, bronchial asthma, heart and vascular diseases, frequent colds turning into pneumonia. These health problems, doctors believe, can affect brain activity, so the child needs to be diagnosed and treated in time, so as not to start a chronic process.

You can't restrain the physical activity of a preschooler who is hyperactive. On the contrary, you need to encourage the child's favorite sports, because this will give him the opportunity to splash out emotions. It is very good to establish clear rules in such games, this will cultivate organization and the desire to achieve their goals in a hyperactive child.

When a child reaches senior preschool age, his fine motor skills of fingers improve. At this age, you can accustom the child to drawing, modeling, give him a construction set. During the lesson, you need to praise and encourage the child, and then he will be able to gradually get used to finishing his tasks. This will help the child to sit through the entire lesson without jumping up.

If a preschool child is surrounded by loving attention from his parents from the first years of his life, hyperactivity syndrome can be successfully overcome by the age of 6-7.