Omega-6 to Omega-3 Fatty Acid Ratio in Patients with ADHD: A Meta-Analysis
J Can Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry. 2016 Spring; 25(2): 87–96., Published online 2016 May 1.
PMCID: PMC4879948
Laura LaChance, MD,1 Kwame McKenzie, BM, MRCPsych,1,2,3 Valerie H. Taylor, MD, PhD, FRCPC,1,4 and Simone N. Vigod, MD, MSc, FRCPC1,4
- ADHD and Vitamin D Deficiency
- Overview: Omega-3 many benefits include helping vitamin D
- Omega-3 for just 3 months greatly reduced psychosis for 80 months – RCT Aug 2015
- Omega-3 helps childhood cognition – meta-analysis April 2016
- Omega-3 map (most of the world has low levels) – May 2016
Items in both categories ADHD and Omega-3 are listed here:
- ADHD risk factors include low Zinc, Vitamin D, Magnesium and Omega-3 (umbrella review) – Oct 2020
- Mental disorders fought by Omega-3 etc. - meta-meta-analysis Oct 2019
- Behavior disorders reduced with Magnesium, Omega-3, and Zinc
- ADHD children eat less fatty fish (Omega-3 again) – May 2019
- Omega-3 probably can decrease Autism and ADHD – March 2019
- Omega-3 reduced violence in children and violence between parents – RCT May 2018
- ADHD, Autism, Early Psychosis and Omega-3 – review Dec 2017
- ADHD 2 times more likely if poor Omega-6 to Omega-3 ratio – meta-analysis May 2016
- ADHD and Vitamin D Deficiency
Download the PDF from Vitamin D Life
Objective: Omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids have been shown to be deficient in individuals with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder compared to controls (Hawkey & Nigg, 2014). Clinical trials of omega-3 and omega-6 supplements as treatment for ADHD have demonstrated minimal efficacy (Bloch & Qawasmi, 2011; Gillies, Sinn, Lad, Leach, & Ross, 2011; Hawkey & Nigg, 2014; Puri & Martins, 2014; Sonuga-Barke et al., 2013). Existing trials have analyzed omega-3 and omega-6 separately although the tissue ratio of these fatty acids (n6/n3) may be more important than absolute levels of either. The objective of this study was to determine the relationship between blood n6/n3 and arachidonic acid to eicosapentaenoic acid (AA/EPA), to ADHD symptoms.
Method: A systematic literature review identified original articles measuring blood n6/n3 or AA/EPA ratio in children and youth with ADHD, compared to controls without ADHD. Three databases were searched. Blood n6/n3, and AA/EPA ratios were compared between individuals with ADHD and controls. Results were pooled across studies using quantitative synthesis.
Results: Five articles met inclusion criteria for the meta-analysis. The pooled mean difference between patients with ADHD and controls was
- 1.97 (0.90–3.04) for n6/n3 (n=5 studies, I2 83%) and
- 8.25 (5.94–10.56) for AA/EPA (n=3 studies, I2 0%).
Conclusions: Children and youth with ADHD have elevated ratios of both blood n6/n3 and AA/EPA fatty acids compared to controls. Thus an elevated n6/n3, and more specifically AA/EPA, ratio may represent the underlying disturbance in essential fatty acid levels in patients with ADHD. These findings have implications for the development of future interventions using essential fatty acids to treat ADHD, and for the use of these ratios as biomarkers for titrating and monitoring ADHD treatment with essential fatty acids.