Fatty Acid Trip

My interest in the effect of fatty acid supplementation began with the discovery of the Durham-Oxford Trial, conducted by Dr. Alexandra Richardson, et al, and the first of now many studies demonstrating the powerful effects of high-EPA fish oil on learning. Dr. Richardson is a true pioneer in changing the way we look at the relationship betweem learning and behavior.

Little did I know just how much this study– about children halfway across the world– would do to improve the quality of my life.

Although I had stumbled upon the study inadventently while researching ways to help my son with his horrrendous handwriting, I was stunned by its content:

In just three months’ time, children who had been identified as struggling academically experienced astounding changes on their mood, ability to concentrate, reading and spelling.

A picture paints a thousand words:

In addition to great spelling and reading gains, many children also achieved higher levels of focus and concentration. Astonishingly, the effect of fatty-acid supplementation on many children was comparable to that of stimulant medication:

The treatment effect size on Conners’ Attention-deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) index rating was 0.55 in the first 3 months, and over 0.70 over the 6 months. This is comparable to the average effect size for stimulant medication: 0.78.”

The forces es at work? Not Ritalin, not boot camp, not 50 hours at your nearest Sylvan Learning Center. No. These children were supplemented with high-EPA fish oil. After thoroughly reading through the site, I tracked down the medical journal articles, which gave me more scientific detail:

• The Oxford-Durham Study: A Randomized, Controlled Trial of Dietary Supplementation With Fatty Acids in Children With Developmental Coordination Disorder

Note that it was published in the American Academy of Pediatrics’ Medical Journal, an impressive feat for sure.

For a brief summary of findings, see this report published by the Durham Local Education Authority.

Wanting to know more, I dug into all the media coverage I could find, largely featured in the British press, which I will feature later in this blog.

And so began my quest… Ω

This entry was posted Tuesday, January 17th, 2006 at 2:36 pm and is filed under Children's Behavior and Learning, ADHD. Both comments and pings are currently closed.