Key Points
• There is a rising prevalence of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder defining the Richardson–Puri fatty acid model of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, suggesting association with fatty acid changes in the modern Western diet.
• Children with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder symptomatology with daily supplementation of evening primrose oil and the ω-3 fatty acid eicosapentaenoic acid leads to beneficial changes in attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder symptomatology.
• There is a case to a move away from modern Western diets, particularly in children, in order to help reduce the rising tide of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder and related disorders.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
References
Puri BK. Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder: A Natural Way to Treat ADHD. London: Hammersmith Press, 2005.
Association AP. Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders: DSM-IV-TR. 4th ed. text revision. ed. Washington, DC: American Psychiatric Association, 2000.
Richardson AJ, Puri BK. The potential role of fatty acids in attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder. Prostaglandins Leukot Essent Fatty Acids 2000; 63: 79–87.
Pudelkewicz C, Seufert J, Holman RT. Requirements of the female rat for linoleic and linolenic acids. J Nutr 1968; 94: 138–146.
Kaufmann WE, Worley PF, Pegg J, Bremer M, Isakson P. COX-2, a synaptically induced enzyme, is expressed by excitatory neurons at postsynaptic sites in rat cerebral cortex. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 1996; 93: 2317–2321.
Smalheiser NR, Dissanayake S, Kapil A. Rapid regulation of neurite outgrowth and retraction by phospholipase A2-derived arachidonic acid and its metabolites. Brain Res 1996; 721: 39–48.
Yehuda S, Rabinovitz S, Mostofsky DI. Essential fatty acids and sleep: mini-review and hypothesis. Med Hypotheses 1998; 50: 139–145.
Fagioli I, Baroncini P, Ricour C, Salzarulo P. Decrease of slow-wave sleep in children with prolonged absence of essential lipids intake. Sleep 1989; 12: 495–499.
Manku MS, Horrobin DF, Morse NL, Wright S, Burton JL. Essential fatty acids in the plasma phospholipids of patients with atopic eczema. Br J Dermatol 1984; 110: 643–648.
Morse PF, Horrobin DF, Manku MS et al. Meta-analysis of placebo-controlled studies of the efficacy of Epogam in the treatment of atopic eczema. Relationship between plasma essential fatty acid changes and clinical response. Br J Dermatol 1989; 121: 75–90.
Wright S, Bolton C. Breast milk fatty acids in mothers of children with atopic eczema. Br J Nutr 1989; 62: 693–697.
Alexander JW. Immunonutrition: the role of omega-3 fatty acids. Nutrition 1998; 14: 627–633.
Holman RT. The slow discovery of the importance of omega 3 essential fatty acids in human health. J Nutr 1998; 128: 427S–33S.
Horrobin DF. The regulation of prostaglandin biosynthesis: negative feedback mechanisms and the selective control of formation of I and 2 series prostaglandins: relevance to inflammation and immunity. Med Hypotheses 1980; 6: 687–709.
Horrobin DF. The roles of prostaglandins and prolactin in depression, mania and schizophrenia. Postgrad Med J 1977; 53(Suppl 4): 160–165.
Horrobin DF, Bennett CN. Depression and bipolar disorder: relationships to impaired fatty acid and phospholipid metabolism and to diabetes, cardiovascular disease, immunological abnormalities, cancer, ageing and osteoporosis. Possible candidate genes. Prostaglandins Leukot Essent Fatty Acids 1999; 60: 217–234.
Puri BK, Counsell SJ, Hamilton G, Richardson AJ, Horrobin DF. Eicosapentaenoic acid in treatment-resistant depression associated with symptom remission, structural brain changes and reduced neuronal phospholipid turnover. Int J Clin Pract 2001; 55: 560–563.
Puri BK, Counsell SJ, Richardson AJ, Horrobin DF. Eicosapentaenoic acid in treatment-resistant depression. Arch Gen Psychiatry 2002; 59: 91–92.
Peet M, Horrobin DF. A dose-ranging study of the effects of ethyl-eicosapentaenoate in patients with ongoing depression despite apparently adequate treatment with standard drugs. Arch Gen Psychiatry 2002; 59: 913–919.
Murck H, Song C, Horrobin DF, Uhr M. Ethyl-eicosapentaenoate and dexamethasone resistance in therapy-refractory depression. Int J Neuropsychopharmacol 2004; 7: 341–349.
Frangou S, Lewis M, McCrone P. Efficacy of ethyl-eicosapentaenoic acid in bipolar depression: randomised double-blind placebo-controlled study. Br J Psychiatry 2006; 188: 46–50.
Richardson AJ, Cox IJ, Sargentoni J, Puri BK. Abnormal cerebral phospholipid metabolism in dyslexia indicated by phosphorus-31 magnetic resonance spectroscopy. NMR Biomed 1997; 10: 309–314.
Baker SM. A biochemical approach to the problem of dyslexia. J Learn Disabil 1985; 18: 581–584.
Sinn N. Physical fatty acid deficiency signs in children with ADHD symptoms. Prostaglandins Leukot Essent Fatty Acids 2007; 77: 109–115.
Puri BK. The clinical advantages of cold-pressed non-raffinated evening primrose oil over refined preparations. Med Hypotheses 2004; 62: 116–118.
Aman MG, Mitchell EA, Turbott SH. The effects of essential fatty acid supplementation by Efamol in hyperactive children. J Abnorm Child Psychol 1987; 15: 75–90.
Arnold LE, Kleykamp D, Votolato NA, Taylor WA, Kontras SB, Tobin K. Gamma-linolenic acid for attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder: placebo-controlled comparison to D-amphetamine. Biol Psychiatry 1989; 25: 222–228.
Voigt RG, Llorente AM, Jensen CL, Fraley JK, Berretta MC, Heird WC. A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial of docosahexaenoic acid supplementation in children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder. J Pediatr 2001; 139: 189–196.
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 2004; 58: 467–473.
Stevens L, Zhang W, Peck L et al. EFA supplementation in children with inattention, hyperactivity, and other disruptive behaviors. Lipids 2003; 38: 1007–1021.
Puri BK, Richardson AD. The effects of olive oil on omega3 fatty acids and mood disorders. Arch Gen Psychiatry 2000; 57: 715.
Harding KL, Judah RD, Gant C. Outcome-based comparison of Ritalin versus food-supplement treated children with AD/HD. Altern Med Rev 2003; 8: 319–330.
Richardson AJ, Puri BK. A randomized double-blind, placebo-controlled study of the effects of supplementation with highly unsaturated fatty acids on ADHD-related symptoms in children with specific learning difficulties. Prog Neuropsychopharmacol Biol Psychiatry 2002; 26: 233–239.
Richardson AJ, Montgomery P. The Oxford-Durham study: a randomized, controlled trial of dietary supplementation with fatty acids in children with developmental coordination disorder. Pediatrics 2005; 115: 1360–1366.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2010 Springer Science+Business Media, LLC
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Puri, B.K. (2010). The Role of Modern Western Diets in Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. In: De Meester, F., Zibadi, S., Watson, R. (eds) Modern Dietary Fat Intakes in Disease Promotion. Nutrition and Health. Humana Press, Totowa, NJ. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-60327-571-2_22
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-60327-571-2_22
Published:
Publisher Name: Humana Press, Totowa, NJ
Print ISBN: 978-1-60327-570-5
Online ISBN: 978-1-60327-571-2
eBook Packages: MedicineMedicine (R0)