Critical appraisal of omega-3 fatty acids in attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder treatment

Anja Königs, Amanda J Kiliaan Department of Anatomy, Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition & Behaviour, Radboud University Medical Center, Nijmegen, the Netherlands Abstract: Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a common neurodevelopmental disorder. The classical tr...

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Autores principales:	Königs A, Kiliaan AJ
Formato:	article
Lenguaje:	EN
Publicado:	Dove Medical Press 2016
Materias:	ADHD omega-3 fatty acids treatment Neurosciences. Biological psychiatry. Neuropsychiatry RC321-571 Neurology. Diseases of the nervous system RC346-429
Acceso en línea:	https://doaj.org/article/baf72bfef72c47daa77b559fae6dbd62
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spelling	oai:doaj.org-article:baf72bfef72c47daa77b559fae6dbd622021-12-02T03:47:45ZCritical appraisal of omega-3 fatty acids in attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder treatment1178-2021https://doaj.org/article/baf72bfef72c47daa77b559fae6dbd622016-07-01T00:00:00Zhttps://www.dovepress.com/critical-appraisal--of-omega-3-fatty-acids-in-attention-deficithyperac-peer-reviewed-article-NDThttps://doaj.org/toc/1178-2021Anja Königs, Amanda J Kiliaan Department of Anatomy, Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition & Behaviour, Radboud University Medical Center, Nijmegen, the Netherlands Abstract: Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a common neurodevelopmental disorder. The classical treatment of ADHD where stimulant medication is used has revealed severe side effects and intolerance. Consequently, the demand to search for alternative treatment has increased rapidly. When comparing levels of omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (ω-3 PUFAs) in ADHD patients with those in age-matching controls, lower levels are found in ADHD patients’ blood. ω-3 PUFAs are essential nutrients and necessary for a proper brain function and development. Additionally, there are strong indications that ω-3 PUFA supplements could have beneficial effects on ADHD. However, the results of ω-3 PUFA supplementation studies show a high variability. Therefore, we reviewed recent studies published between 2000 and 2015 to identify effective treatment combinations, the quality of design, and safety and tolerability of ω-3-containing food supplements. We searched the databases MEDLINE, PubMed, and Web of Science with keywords such as “ADHD” and “ω-3/6 PUFA” and identified 25 studies that met the inclusion and exclusion criteria. The results of these ω-3 PUFA studies are contradictory but, overall, show evidence for a successful treatment of ADHD symptoms. Tolerability of the given supplements was high, and only mild side effects were reported. In conclusion, there is evidence that a ω-3 PUFA treatment has a positive effect on ADHD. It should be added that treatment could be more effective in patients with mild forms of ADHD. Moreover, the dosage of stimulant medication could be reduced when used in combination with ω-3 PUFA supplements. Further studies are necessary to investigate underlying mechanisms that can lead to a reduction of ADHD symptoms due to ω-3 PUFA treatments and also to determine the optimal concentrations of ω-3 PUFAs, whether used as single treatment or in combination with other medication. Keywords: ADHD, ω-3 fatty acids, treatment, DHA, EPAKönigs AKiliaan AJDove Medical PressarticleADHDomega-3 fatty acidstreatmentNeurosciences. Biological psychiatry. NeuropsychiatryRC321-571Neurology. Diseases of the nervous systemRC346-429ENNeuropsychiatric Disease and Treatment, Vol 2016, Iss Issue 1, Pp 1869-1882 (2016)
institution	DOAJ
collection	DOAJ
language	EN
topic	ADHD omega-3 fatty acids treatment Neurosciences. Biological psychiatry. Neuropsychiatry RC321-571 Neurology. Diseases of the nervous system RC346-429
spellingShingle	ADHD omega-3 fatty acids treatment Neurosciences. Biological psychiatry. Neuropsychiatry RC321-571 Neurology. Diseases of the nervous system RC346-429 Königs A Kiliaan AJ Critical appraisal of omega-3 fatty acids in attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder treatment
description	Anja Königs, Amanda J Kiliaan Department of Anatomy, Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition & Behaviour, Radboud University Medical Center, Nijmegen, the Netherlands Abstract: Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a common neurodevelopmental disorder. The classical treatment of ADHD where stimulant medication is used has revealed severe side effects and intolerance. Consequently, the demand to search for alternative treatment has increased rapidly. When comparing levels of omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (ω-3 PUFAs) in ADHD patients with those in age-matching controls, lower levels are found in ADHD patients’ blood. ω-3 PUFAs are essential nutrients and necessary for a proper brain function and development. Additionally, there are strong indications that ω-3 PUFA supplements could have beneficial effects on ADHD. However, the results of ω-3 PUFA supplementation studies show a high variability. Therefore, we reviewed recent studies published between 2000 and 2015 to identify effective treatment combinations, the quality of design, and safety and tolerability of ω-3-containing food supplements. We searched the databases MEDLINE, PubMed, and Web of Science with keywords such as “ADHD” and “ω-3/6 PUFA” and identified 25 studies that met the inclusion and exclusion criteria. The results of these ω-3 PUFA studies are contradictory but, overall, show evidence for a successful treatment of ADHD symptoms. Tolerability of the given supplements was high, and only mild side effects were reported. In conclusion, there is evidence that a ω-3 PUFA treatment has a positive effect on ADHD. It should be added that treatment could be more effective in patients with mild forms of ADHD. Moreover, the dosage of stimulant medication could be reduced when used in combination with ω-3 PUFA supplements. Further studies are necessary to investigate underlying mechanisms that can lead to a reduction of ADHD symptoms due to ω-3 PUFA treatments and also to determine the optimal concentrations of ω-3 PUFAs, whether used as single treatment or in combination with other medication. Keywords: ADHD, ω-3 fatty acids, treatment, DHA, EPA
format	article
author	Königs A Kiliaan AJ
author_facet	Königs A Kiliaan AJ
author_sort	Königs A
title	Critical appraisal of omega-3 fatty acids in attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder treatment
title_short	Critical appraisal of omega-3 fatty acids in attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder treatment
title_full	Critical appraisal of omega-3 fatty acids in attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder treatment
title_fullStr	Critical appraisal of omega-3 fatty acids in attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder treatment
title_full_unstemmed	Critical appraisal of omega-3 fatty acids in attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder treatment
title_sort	critical appraisal of omega-3 fatty acids in attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder treatment
publisher	Dove Medical Press
publishDate	2016
url	https://doaj.org/article/baf72bfef72c47daa77b559fae6dbd62
work_keys_str_mv	AT konigsa criticalappraisalofomega3fattyacidsinattentiondeficithyperactivitydisordertreatment AT kiliaanaj criticalappraisalofomega3fattyacidsinattentiondeficithyperactivitydisordertreatment
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Critical appraisal of omega-3 fatty acids in attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder treatment

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