When a prescription medication is advertised on TV, listen carefully to the fast talking disclaimers at the end. They often warn, "Don't take this if you are on an MAO inhibiter." In the simplest possible terms, MAOIs are drugs that make it difficult for people to break down amines. If you must take an MAOI, you are on a low amine diet, and you can't take any drugs that are themselves amines, or break down into amines in the body. Since our kids react to amines, we have to pretend like they are on MAOIs all the time.
Consult your drug guide or ask your pharmacist; ritalin should not be taken if you are on an MAOI. In other words, it is an amine, or it breaks down into amines in the body. No wonder John reacted badly to it. As it turns out, all the drugs that are typically given to ADHD children are amines. If these meds make your child worse, he may react to amines.
Other <broad classes of amines> include decongestants and cough suppressants. This explains a great deal. The last time I gave John a Contac 12 hour capsule he became so violent I had to keep him in his room for the next 24 hours so he would not harm himself or others. The last time I gave Mary a decongestant we had to rush her to the hospital for a life threatening asthma attack. Yes, they really do react to amines. If the food correlations don't convince you, the meds certainly will.