Effect of docosahexaenoic acid-containing food administration on symptoms of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder - a placebo-controlled double-blind study

• Published in: European journal of clinical nutrition 2004-03, Vol.58 (3), p.467-473
• Main Authors: Hirayama, S, Hamazaki, T, Terasawa, K
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Aggression - drug effects; Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity - drug therapy; Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder; Biological and medical sciences; Bread; Child; Child Behavior - drug effects; Children; Clinical Nutrition; Clinical trials; Diet; Dietary supplements; Docosahexaenoic acid; Docosahexaenoic Acids - pharmacology; Docosahexaenoic Acids - therapeutic use; Double-Blind Method; Double-blind studies; Epidemiology; Fatty acids; Feeding. Feeding behavior; Female; Fermented milk products; Fish oils; Fish Oils - administration & dosage; Fish Oils - chemistry; Food; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Humans; Hyperactivity; Impulsive behavior; Internal Medicine; Male; Medicine; Medicine & Public Health; Memory - drug effects; Metabolic Diseases; Motor task performance; original-communication; Placebos; Public Health; Sensorimotor integration; Sensory integration; Short term memory; Soya bean milk; Soybean milk; Soybeans; Treatment Outcome; Vertebrates: anatomy and physiology, studies on body, several organs or systems; Visual perception; Visual stimuli
• ISSN: 0954-3007; 1476-5640
• DOI: 10.1038/sj.ejcn.1601830

Objective : To investigate whether docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) supplementation was able to ameliorate attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder(AD/HD) symptoms in AD/HD children. Design and subjects : A placebo-controlled double-blind study with 40 AD/HD (including eight AD/HD-suspected) children of 6–12 y of age who were mostly without medication. Subjects of a DHA group ( n =20) took active foods containing fish oil (fermented soybean milk, bread rolls and steamed bread; 3.6 g DHA/week from these foods) for 2 months, whereas those of a control group ( n =20) took indistinguishable control foods without fish oil. The following items were measured at the start and end of the study: (1) attention deficit, hyperactivity and impulsivity (AD/HD-related symptoms according to DSM-IV criteria); (2) aggression assessed by both parents and teachers; (3) visual perception (finding symbols out of a table); (4) visual and auditory short-term memory; (5) development of visual–motor integration; (6) continuous performance; (7) impatience. Results : Changes in tests 1, 2, 3, 5 and 7 over time did not significantly differ between the two groups. However, visual short-term memory and errors of commission (continuous performance) significantly improved in the control group compared with the changes over time in the DHA group ( P =0.02 and 0.001, respectively). Recalculation without AD/HD-suspected subjects ( n =4 each group) showed similar P -values with regard to both measures. Conclusions : DHA supplementation did not improve AD/HD-related symptoms. Treatment of ADHD with fatty acids deserves further investigation, but careful attention should be paid as to which fatty acid(s) is used.