“They took my money,” Sabti said, “and my son was the same.” ‘We want science to drive treatment’ “The whole thing is a hoax,” said Atheer Sabti, who took out a $12,500 loan in 2017 to pay for a six-month Brain Balance program in Plano, Texas, to help his then 12-year-old son, who was getting into trouble and struggling to focus in school. And when he's not as frustrated, we don't have behavior issues.”īut other parents say they’ve seen only minor improvements - if any - despite months of hard work and high bills. “It’s giving him skills to help when he is frustrated. “LearningRx makes you use your brain in a different way than you do in school,” said Kyle’s mother, Alana Gregory, who says her son is focusing better and is less likely to hit other children than he was before he started the program in August. NBCNews spoke to 22 parents of children who enrolled in Brain Balance or LearningRx, two of the largest one-on-one training programs, and many described positive results. That hasn’t stopped families from enrolling. NBC News spoke with more than a dozen scientists and experts who said that while there’s promise in some forms of brain training, the field is so new that many companies are making claims that go far beyond what they can prove. “These organizations are not necessarily predatory, but they are definitely there and almost chasing the parents who are desperate, who are overwhelmed and who feel that they have no recourse.”Īs the number of children diagnosed with ADHD and autism surges in the U.S., according to federal data, and as parents become exasperated with treatments that don’t work or involve medications that carry the risk of side effects, neurotechnology industry analysts predict the demand for programs like these will only grow.
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“They’re selling hope,” said Eric Rossen, the director of professional development and standards for the National Association of School Psychologists. Families have gone into debt or turned to crowdfunding sites to pay for them. These personalized programs can cost $12,000 or more for six months of training, three days a week. Elaine Cromie / for NBC Newsīut the premise behind the programs has faced significant criticism from doctors and scientists who warn that some are making dubious claims. Isak's parents credit the Brain Balance program with reducing the violent tantrums that used to torment him and his family. Brick-and-mortar training centers like Brain Balance Achievement Centers, which Izak attends, and LearningRx, Kyle’s program, are just one piece of a $2 billion global brain technology market that is increasingly going around the medical industry and marketing directly to consumers. The programs are part of a fast-growing industry that’s based on the premise that targeted games and exercises can rewire the brain to boost memory, sharpen thinking or decrease the challenges associated with anxiety, autism, ADHD and other disorders.
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