Just as micronutrients (in conjunction with stimulant medication) can help improve certain ADHD symptoms in many people, the opposite is also true: Deficiencies in key contributors to your body’s neurotransmitters and proteins can worsen your mood, concentration, and impulsivity.

The good news is that basic blood tests will reveal the imbalances that may be impeding your daily functioning. Ask your clinician to check your bloodwork for the following levels, which are based on functional medicine ranges for optimizing health and preventing disease, rather than standard reference ranges, which are designed to diagnose clinical diseases. Be sure to consult with your doctor before taking any supplements.

Vitamin D

If vitamin levels are below 40 ng/ml, which is often considered insufficient, take 5,000 IU of vitamin D, combined with K2 to help with absorption. When vitamin D levels are lower than 30 ng/ml, the bare minimum, symptoms can include chronic fatigue, poor focus, irritability, poor stress resilience, and sleep disturbances. When levels are corrected over 6 to 12 weeks, patients report improved mood stability, energy, and cognitive clarity, plus fewer PMS symptoms. Once the level is above 40, you can maintain with 2,000 IU per day.

Foods with vitamin D include fatty fish, like salmon and sardines, egg yolks, tofu, dairy and plant-based milk, orange juice, and oatmeal.

[Free Download: Brain Food: Healthy Eating Tips to Counter ADHD Symptoms]

Omega-3 Fatty Acids

The optimal omega-3 index (EPA+DHA in red blood cells is 8% or higher. This range is associated with the lowest risk for cardiovascular and inflammatory diseases. Daily intake to achieve this is typically 1,500 to 4,000 mg of combined EPA/DHA, with a 2:1 ratio of omega-6 to omega-3.

Salmon, sardines, chickpeas, walnuts, pumpkin seeds, avocado, and fish oil supplements are rich in omega-3 fatty acids.

Complete Blood Count (CBC)

This blood test analyzes your red and white blood cells, platelets, hemoglobin, and hematocrit to determine if you are anemic. Iron is essential for synthesizing dopamine, a neurotransmitter vital for powering executive functions. Low iron impairs dopamine function, exacerbating ADHD traits.
If your hemoglobin is under 13.5 g/dL for a woman and 14.0 g/dL for a man, you are deficient. If your hematocrit is below 36% for a woman and 40% for a man, you are deficient.

If this is the case for you, consider eating iron-rich goods, like spinach, lentils, tofu, red meat, and fish, and/or taking an iron supplement. Taking vitamin C with a supplement can boost absorption. The more easily absorbed iron supplements include ferrous fumerate, gluconate, and bisglycinate. Avoid ferrous sulfate, which can cause indigestion and constipation.

Vitamin B12

The optimal level for vitamin B12 is above 600 pg/ml. If you fall below this level, take a daily supplement with 2 mcg of vitamin B12 and retest your levels in six months. Symptoms of low vitamin B12 include fatigue, memory loss, mood changes, confusion, depression, and irritability.

Foods rich in B12 include beef, clams, salmon, tuna, fortified nutritional yeast, plant-based milk, and some breakfast cereals.

Magnesium Glycinate

Magnesium levels can be decreased by stimulant medications, as well as by conditions including diabetes, kidney disease, and gut issues. An RBC magnesium reference range is typically between 4.2 and 6.8 mg/dL and can be maintained by a daily intake of 360-480 mg of magnesium for adults. Research links low magnesium levels with poor concentration, irritability, depression, mood swings, fatigue, muscle cramps, and insomnia.

Green leafy vegetables, legumes, nuts, seeds, and whole grains are good sources of magnesium.

[Free Download: Top 5 Vitamins and Supplements for ADHD ]

Zinc

Optimal values are 90-120 mcg/dL. Levels below 70 mcg/dL in women and 74 mcg/dL in men are considered inadequate. If deficient, take 30 mg of zinc picolinate twice daily for 6 months, then retest. Many people are deficient in this mineral, which affects attention, energy, and mood.

Shellfish, red meat, poultry, seeds, nuts, eggs, dairy, and grains are rich in zinc.

A Blood Test for Vitamin D Deficiency: Next Steps

• Read: 10 Supplements and Vitamins for Brain Health
• Read: Do Melatonin, Omega 3 & Dietary Supplements Help ADHD?
• Free Download: The Best Vitamins and Supplements for Managing ADHD Symptoms
  

Maggie Alexander, ND, MS, PMHNP, is a psychiatric-mental health nurse practitioner and author of Shine with ADHD: Unlock Your Potential with Skills, Medicine, and Micronutrients (#CommissionsEarned). 

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March 30, 2026

ADHD coaching remains an increasingly popular adjunctive approach to managing symptoms that is recommended by health care practitioners and professional practice guidelines, though most coaches operate without clinical oversight, mental health training, or a professional license, according to a new study published in JAMA Network Open.¹

An ADHD coach need not be a therapist or medical expert. Coaching provides practical, collaborative support for people with ADHD and is separate from the diagnostic and treatment roles of clinical providers. ADHD coaching evolved from the life coaching movement and grew in popularity during the COVID-19 pandemic.² Nearly two-thirds of currently active coaches (60.9%) began practicing during or after the pandemic, according to the study, which analyzed survey results from 481 ADHD coaches over a six-month period.

No licensure exists specifically for ADHD coaches; just 15% of the surveyed coaches attained a professional medical license, and 90.5% said they lacked formal clinical supervision. That said, one-third of coaches sought informal consultation from clinicians. More than half of the coaches reported referring clients to clinicians for ADHD evaluations (78.9%), medication (61%), and cognitive behavioral therapy (50.9%). A smaller percentage (21.3%) referred clients to holistic, naturopathic, or other healing arts professionals.

The ADHD Coaches Organization (ACO) says that an individual must complete a fully integrated ADHD coach training program or at least 60 hours of International Coaching Federation-compliant life coach training, plus at least 35 hours of ADHD coach training from recognized sources, to be recognized as a professional ADHD coach. Slightly more than 60% of study participants completed an ADHD coach training curriculum endorsed by the ACO.

Work experience in mental health did not appear to be a prerequisite for a career in ADHD coaching. Only 10% of participants worked in mental health prior to becoming an ADHD coach; one-third came from an education background. According to the survey, lived experience with ADHD informed most of the coaches’ practices. The majority (90.5%) emphasized their personal connections to ADHD during client sessions, which included:

• having a family member with ADHD: 77.6%
• self-identifying as either having or suspecting they have ADHD: 72.7%
• teaching or working professionally with individuals with ADHD: 66.7%
• having friends or a romantic partner with ADHD: 60.2%
• receiving a formal ADHD diagnosis: 58.9%
• receiving ADHD coaching as a client: 44.5%

Coaches tended to be self-employed, worked from home, and offered virtual one-hour weekly sessions. They charged a median rate of $150 per visit, which most clients paid out of pocket. Less than 5% of ADHD coaches accepted health insurance.

ADHD Coaching and CBT

While most ADHD coaches do not have medical or mental health training, their approaches tend to take a page out of the evidence-based cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) playbook, including:

• executive function skills training or targeting self-motivation: 99.4%
• cognitive restructuring: 99.4%
• motivational interviewing: 96.6%,
• solution-focused approaches: 97.8%
• between sessions homework assignments: 83%

“The potential redundancy in content between ADHD coaching and CBT for ADHD could make it difficult for prospective clients and some medical clinicians to differentiate between these approaches,” the researchers wrote.

What differentiates ADHD coaching from traditional CBT is the sharing of lived experiences with ADHD and the long-term nature and support coaches offer between sessions. The researchers suggest that these features make ADHD coaching appealing to adults with ADHD, who may find CBT too rigid, generic, and short-term.

“If consumers find ADHD coaching more palatable than CBT, they may be more likely to initially engage and sustain participation,” they wrote.

ADHD Coaching Fills a Need

Many adults and caregivers cite positive experiences working with an ADHD coach. According to ADDitude’s 2023 treatment survey of more than 11,000 caregivers and adults with ADHD, nearly 1 in 5 adults and 1 in 7 children with ADHD received ADHD coaching. Among that group, the majority (93% of adults and 82% of caregivers) said they would recommend it.

The study even reported that 65% of clients received direct referrals from clinicians.^{3, 4}
ADHD coaching appears especially effective for clients seeking tailored interventions in areas, such as

• sleep management: 98%
• self-worth: 98.1%
• emotional concerns: 97%
• health behavior (e.g., nutrition, exercise, managing medical conditions): 97%
• parenting: 81.5%
• ADHD medication adherence: 77.8%
• substance use and/or addictions: 53%
• trauma: 48.7%
• suicidality, abuse, and/or harm to self or others: 41.6%

“ADHD coaching is an ongoing collaborative partnership which empowers clients to accomplish personal and professional goals with customized strategies built specifically for ADHD minds,” said David Giwerc, MCC, MCAC, founder and president of the ADD Coach Academy (ADDCA), during the ADDitude webinar “How CBT and ADHD Coaching Help Adults Manage Their Symptoms Naturally,” with J. Russell Ramsay, Ph.D.

Know Your ADHD Coach

The researchers stress that ADHD coaching should not be viewed as equivalent to evidence-based psychotherapy for ADHD, but it can augment the recommended treatment for ADHD that includes a combination of ADHD medication and psychosocial treatment.

More qualitative research is needed to clarify the safety, effectiveness, and potential cost savings of ADHD coaching. The absence of standards and regulations about who can operate as an ADHD coach increases the risk of negative outcomes.

“There are many potential drawbacks when pivoting to unsupervised, lay-practitioner treatment models,” the researchers wrote. “In addition to potential reduced efficacy if evidence-informed approaches are delivered inconsistently or incorrectly, adverse effects may include the spread of misinformation about ADHD, risk of giving harmful advice, challenges in maintaining professional boundaries, and ethical concerns such as loss of patient confidentiality.”

Questions for a Potential ADHD Coach

Clients should practice due diligence when vetting a potential ADHD coach.

“You should interview as many coaches as you can,” says Sandy Maynard, an ADHD coach and operator of Catalytic Coaching. “Make sure you leave the interview with answers and a good sense of the coach as a person and what a relationship would be like with them.”

She recommends asking the following questions during an information interview:

• How long have you been an ADHD coach?
• What percentage of your practice is devoted to individuals with ADHD? With which age groups do you work?
• What is your approach to coaching? Do you offer an introductory session, so that we can get to know one another?
• What kind of training do you have, and how extensive is it?
• I have identified (__) as one of my coaching needs. Do you have experience in this area?
• What are your fees? How and when is payment due?
• Do you coach in-person or virtually?
• What is expected of me during our coaching relationship (homework, evaluations, communication between sessions)?
• How will you monitor progress? What happens if I’m not making any?
• Will you work, or confer, with my doctor, therapist, or family?
• Can you give me the names of references?
• Can you refer me to another coach, therapist, or psychologist, if needed

Sources

¹Sibley, M.H., Graham, E.D., Brooks, J.K., et al. (2026). Demographics, services, and practices in attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder coaching in the US.Jama Netw. Open. http://doi.org/10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2025.52407

²Sullivan Aboujaoude E. (2020). Where life coaching ends and therapy begins: toward a less confusing treatment landscape. Perspect Psychol Sci. http://doi.org/10.1177/1745691620904962

³Sullivan May, T., Birch, E., Chaves, K., et al. (2023). The Australian evidence-based clinical practice guideline for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. Aust N Z J Psychiatry. http://doi.org/10.1177/00048674231166329

⁴Sullivan Wolraich, M.L., Hagan, J.F., Jr., et al. (2019). Subcommittee on Children and Adolescents With Attention-Deficit/Hyperactive Disorder. Clinical practice guideline for the diagnosis, evaluation, and treatment of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder in children and adolescents. Pediatrics. http://doi.org/10.1542/peds.2019-2528

February 23, 2026

ADHD traits in childhood predict physical health problems in midlife, but early exercise interventions may offset this risk, suggest two new studies.

A cohort study of 10,930 participants published in JAMA found that adults with severe childhood ADHD traits had more physical health problems and greater physical health-related disability by age 46 compared to those with less severe ADHD symptoms by age 10.¹

The researchers reported that 42.1% of participants with higher ADHD traits in childhood developed multimorbidity (two or more co-occurring physical health conditions) by age 46. In comparison, just 37.5% of participants with fewer ADHD traits experienced the same health outcomes. Notably, the link between ADHD traits and physical health-related disability appeared much larger in women than it did in men.

Cumulative exposure to health risk factors, such as smoking, alcohol use, psychological distress, low educational attainment, and high body mass index, explains part of the association between ADHD, multimorbidity, and physical disability. However, the researchers emphasized that the direct association between ADHD and physical health outcomes remained significant.

“Clinicians should be aware of the increased rates of physical health problems and associated disability in people with ADHD and should proactively address potential contributing health risk factors,” they wrote. “Integrated interventions addressing mental health, physical health, and key health risk factors may help to reduce chronic conditions in this population.”

The JAMA study analyzed data from the population-based 1970 British Cohort Study, which included people born in England, Scotland, and Wales during the same week in 1970, with follow-up data collected over 46 years.

Increased Mortality Risk for People with ADHD

Untreated physical health problems and co-occurring conditions could reduce the life expectancy of people with ADHD at a higher rate than seen in the general population. A January 2025 study published in The British Journal of Psychiatry comparing the mortality rates of people diagnosed with ADHD to people without ADHD found that the life expectancy for women with ADHD is 8.6 years shorter than that of women without ADHD, while the life expectancy of men with ADHD is 6.8 years shorter. ²

“Adults with diagnosed ADHD are living shorter lives than they should,” the study’s authors wrote. “We believe that is likely caused by modifiable risk factors and unmet support and treatment needs in terms of both ADHD and co-occurring mental and physical health conditions.”

Exercise Interventions Improve Long-Term Mental Health

A 2023 treatment survey of 11,000 ADDitude readers reported positive benefits of exercise. About half of the respondents who exercise regularly rate this ADHD treatment as “extremely” or “very” effective. A staggering 94% of caregivers and 95% of adults recommend exercise to treat ADHD symptoms. However, only 13% said a doctor had recommended exercise to reduce symptoms, and just 37% said physical activity was part of their treatment plan.

“When I get into a good stride with routine exercise, it almost always goes hand-in-hand with better eating habits, better focus, energy levels, mental clarity, and stronger relationships and productivity,” said one adult with ADHD. “Exercise is undoubtedly a crucial piece of the (treatment) puzzle.”

“Depression can really take hold of my 10-year-old son,” one parent said. “We see great improvements after physical activity. He enjoys the elliptical, rower, spin bikes, automatic stepper, and treadmill.”

A new meta-analysis including 18 studies further explores the potential of exercise as an effective adjunctive approach for improving mental health in individuals with ADHD when it is integrated into a multimodal treatment plan that includes pharmacotherapy, behavioral therapy, or psychoeducation.
Exercise interventions produced small-to-moderate improvements in depressive symptoms, anxiety, and emotion regulation in individuals with ADHD, according to the study published in Frontiers in Psychology.

Mind-body integrated exercises, such as yoga and tai chi, significantly improved both depression and anxiety symptoms compared to physical exercises (e.g., structured fitness or sports without a mindfulness component), which did not show significant improvements across outcomes.

The researchers suggest that this advantage may stem from the “mind-body integration” of activities like yoga. By combining physical movement with breath awareness, focused attention, and present-moment acceptance, mind-body exercises directly target emotional dysregulation and attentional control, which are core components of ADHD.

Results from the meta-analysis found that adolescents with anxiety who practiced mind-body exercises experienced the greatest improvements. While children showed moderate improvement, the results were not statistically significant. These discrepancies could be due to developmental differences: Adolescents may be better able to engage with and benefit from the psychological components of exercise, while younger children may require more play-based or gamified approaches.

In addition, the most statistically significant reduction in depressive symptoms occurred from moderate-intensity exercise, whereas low-intensity and high-intensity exercises did not demonstrate measurable benefits for depression, anxiety, or emotion regulation.

While intervention length varied widely (from single sessions to 20-week programs), with no clear differences emerging across durations, single sessions demonstrated immediate short-term anxiety-reducing effects. However, to sustain benefits, longer-term participation may be necessary, the researchers suggest.

They emphasized that the study’s overall findings should be viewed as hypothesis-generating rather than definitive. “Because study designs and exercise protocols varied considerably, the results should be interpreted cautiously, and more rigorous research is needed before definitive clinical guidelines can be established,” they wrote.

Sources

¹Stott, J., O’Nions, E., Corrigan, L., Cotton, J., Donnellan, W.J., et al. (2026). Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder Traits in Childhood and Physical Health in Midlife. JAMA Netw Open. https://doi.org/10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2025.54802

²O’Nions, E., El Baou, C., John, A., Lewer, D., Mandy, W., McKechnie, D.G.J. et al. (2025). Life expectancy and years of life lost for adults with diagnosed ADHD in the UK: matched cohort study. The British Journal of Psychiatry. https://doi.org/10.1192/bjp.2024.199

³Shenning, Z., Yaoqi, H., Wenying, S., and Xiangqin, S. (2026). The effect of exercise interventions on mental health in children and adolescents with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder: a meta-analysis. Front. Psychol. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2026.1748777