Does fish oil help children with ADHD or ADD?

There have been some medical trials on omega 3 fish oils and its role in treating childhood ADD or ADHD.

And it's an important issue as the diagnosis of ADHD in both children and adults have increased in recent decades.

Some studies look at the blood levels of omega 3s in children with or without ADHD, but some are randomised placebo controlled trials.

Let's examine this relationship between fish oil and ADHD a bit more.

A randomised placebo controlled trials by the University of South Australia and CSIRO looked at children age 7 to 12 years over a 30 weeks.

The study compared giving fish oil and evening primrose oil (omega 3 fatty acids) with a high ratio of EPA to DHA (2 types of omega 3s).

It was found that 30 to 40 per cent of children over the 30 weeks showed an improvement in ADHD symptoms.

The treatment group that was given placebo was swapped to omega 3 and showed improvement, while the treatment group from 15-30 weeks continued to improve.

So this study supports the idea that omega 3 improves on the behaviour of children with ADHD.

To learn more about omega 3 fatty acids, see omega3oils.info

As we move into the future, natural remedies will be sought more and more as the side effect profile is usually low and the nutrients tend to have multiple benefits.

Omega 3s have been shown to benefit the heart, brain, depression, PMS and other health issues not just ADHD.

Perhaps there is a common link between the overall ability of the brain to work well and omega 3 oils which after all is one of the major components of the brain.

So let's look out for more studies in this area of omega 3 and the brain, including ADHD.

More research usually results in more data and certainty of the effect of fish oils on the brain and its conditions such as ADHD.

So until next time, keep in good health, and let a friend know about these studies in ADHD, especially if they have children with the condition.