Omega-3s improve cognitive abilities in children

Omega 3 supplementation improves neuropsychological function in malnourished children. It only takes 3 months of treatment with EPA (eicosapentaenoic acid) and DHA (docosahexanoic acid) to improve attention coordination, executive functions, and speed of information processes.

This is the result of a study conducted by researchers from the Universidad Autónoma de Ciudad Juárez (Mexico), the Universidad de Granada (Spain) and the University of North Carolina (USA). The research, published in the journal Research in Developmental Disabilities, is one of the few to have considered the role of Omega-3s on cognitive performance in malnourished children and pre-adolescents.

Children and malnutrition

Although the study was conducted on Mexican children, malnutrition is a problem that affects many other countries as well. In America in 2012, an estimated 14.5 percent of households were affected by food insecurity at certain times of the year, and 5.7 percent live in a state of severe food insecurity. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, 3.9 million families are unable to adequately provide for their children's food needs. Malnutrition in the early years of childhood can have serious effects on growth and organ maturation, and if it continues to an older age it can affect cognitive and schooling abilities.

Omega-3s improve cognitive parameters 

Fifty-nine malnourished children, aged 8 to 12 years, were involved during the study. One group of them received 180 mg of DHA and 270 mg of EPA daily, the other group received a placebo. Eighteen cognitive parameters were assessed for each at both the beginning and end of the 3-month treatment. The results showed that in the group that had received Omega-3s, as many as 50 percent of the children improved in 11 of the 18 variables studied.

In contrast, effects were not visible in the placebo group. In particular, coordination, attention, perceptual integration, and executive function were enhanced in more than 70 percent of the children treated with EPA and DHA. The research showed no differences in memory, contrary to what the researchers initially hypothesized and as reported by previous studies. According to the scientists who conducted the research, the increase in memory evident in both groups may be due to external stimuli rather than EPA and DHA supplementation. This study is the first to consider changes in each individual subject and thus sheds light on the clinical significance of supplementation beyond that of statistics.

An important result to be further investigated

Based on the results, it can be concluded that Omega-3 improves cognitive performance but not memory, thus showing some specificity of the positive effects. Although there is no doubt about the benefits of Omega-3s in these children, who habitually took them in low amounts, it should be considered that 3 months of treatment may be too little to study the change in cognitive abilities It will take more studies with different experimental models to confirm what has been reported. 

Source : Verónica Portillo-Reyes, Miguel Pérez-García , Yolanda Loya-Méndez ,Antonio E. Puente "Clinical significance of neuropsychological improvement after supplementation with omega-3 in 8-12 years old malnourished Mexican children: A randomized, double-blind, placebo and treatment clinical trial".Research in Developmental Disabilities, Volume 35, Issue 4, April 2014, Pages 861-870