Nature-Deficit-Disorder

 Throughout the last hundred years of urban sprawl, we have begun to take nature over completely, leaving little or no trace of it behind. Kids that grow up in inner cities have never seen the forest or the ocean in their entire lives. Moreover, in recent history the human race has reached a point where there are now more people living in urban cities than there are living in rural country sides. We have lost our connection with the natural world, and our inner humanity is starting to take control and is having serious consequences on a child's mental well-being. In the book "Last Child in the Woods," author Richard Louv talks about the possible link between increasing ADHD and the lack of nature in children. Now, my eleven year old sister has ADHD as well as Dyslexia, so I was quite skeptical about the facts prior to reading the story. I believed that ADHD was closely linked to genetics and also an ever increasing artificial additives in food. However, Louv theorizes about a disorder, called Nature-Deficit-Disorder, which asks if the loss of nature in everyday lives has led to increasing reports of ADHD.
 Whether or not he has changed my mind about what I believe about the disorder, I still think that he brought up significant points that should be researched farther to understand the full meaning of. I talked with my mother, who believes even more than I do that the food additives and genetics are to blame. I tried to get her to think about reading the book but she dismissed it immediately. None the less, I am still gonna buy the book for her birthday so that one day she might read it and learn something more about the disorder that interferes with my sister's life everyday.
 A lack of nature also brings up other points that affect our lives and well being. Our class discussed the thought that increased disease is tied to someway with a lack of nature. The professor told us that growing up with two pets decreases the risk of asthma and other diseases by 80%. Moreover, that in third-world countries, where living with animals is second nature, asthma is almost unheard of. It really makes me wonder more if our modern, clean, and anti-bacterial way of life is starting to cause more harm than it is providing well being. To summarize, I feel that our inner conscious is starting to lash out in every way possible and hanging on to our natural roots in anyway possible.