Does Zinc Moderate Essential Fatty Acid and Amphetamine Treatment of Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder?
Date
2000
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Mary Ann Liebert, Inc. Publishers
Abstract
Zinc is an important co-factor for metabolism relevant to neurotransmitters, fatty acids, prostaglandins, and
melatonin, and indirectly affects dopamine metabolism, believed intimately involved in
attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). To explore the relationship of zinc nutrition to essential
fatty acid supplement and stimulant effects in treatment of ADHD, we re-analyzed data from an 18-subject
double-blind, placebo-controlled crossover treatment comparison of d-amphetamine and Efamol (evening
primrose oil, rich in gamma-linolenic acid). Subjects were categorized as zinc-adequate (n = 5), borderline
zinc (n = 5), and zinc-deficient (n = 8) by hair, red cell, and urine zinc levels; for each category,
placebo-active difference means were calculated on teachers' ratings. Placebo-controlled d-amphetamine
response appeared linear with zinc nutrition, but the relationship of Efamol response to zinc appeared
U-shaped; Efamol benefit was evident only with borderline zinc. Placebo-controlled effect size (Cohen's d)
for both treatments ranged up to 1.5 for borderline zinc and dropped to 0.3-0.7 with mild zinc deficiency. If
upheld by prospective research, this post-hoc exploration suggests that zinc nutrition may be important for
treatment of ADHD even by pharmacotherapy, and if Efamol benefits ADHD, it likely does so by improving
or compensating for borderline zinc nutrition.
Description
Keywords
Citation
L. Eugene Arnold, Sandra M. Pinkhamet and Nicholas Votolato, "Does Zinc Moderate Essential Fatty Acid and Amphetamine Treatment of Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder?," Journal of Child and Adolescent Psychopharmacology 10, no. 2 (2000), doi:10.1089/cap.2000.10.111