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

European Journal of Clinical Nutrition volume 58, pages 467–473 (2004)Cite this article

Abstract

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.

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Acknowledgements

This work was partly supported by a grant from Japan Fisheries Association and Foundation for Total Health Promotion.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Early Childhood Education and Care, Kurashiki City College, Okayama, Japan

    S Hirayama

  2. Department of Clinical Application, Institute of Natural Medicine, Toyama Medical and Pharmaceutical University, Toyama, Japan

    T Hamazaki

  3. Toyama Medical and Pharmaceutical University, Toyama, Japan

    K Terasawa

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Correspondence to T Hamazaki.

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Hirayama, S., Hamazaki, T. & Terasawa, K. Effect of docosahexaenoic acid-containing food administration on symptoms of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder — a placebo-controlled double-blind study. Eur J Clin Nutr 58, 467–473 (2004). https://doi.org/10.1038/sj.ejcn.1601830

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