ADDers Are More Likely to Have Fatty Acid Deficiencies

A Purdue University study showed that kids low in Omega-3 essential fatty acids are significantly more likely to be hyperactive, have learning disorders, and to display behavioral problems. Omega-3 deficiencies have also been tied to dyslexia, violence, depression, memory problems, weight gain, cancer, heart disease, eczema, allergies, inflammatory diseases, arthritis, diabetes, and many other conditions. Over 2,000 scientific studies have demonstrated the wide range of problems associated with Omega-3 deficiencies. The American diet is almost devoid of Omega 3's except for certain types of fish. In fact, researchers believe that about 60% of Americans are deficient in Omega-3 fatty acids, and about 20% have so little that test methods cannot even detect any in their blood.

Your brain is more than 60% structural fat, just as your muscles are made of protein and your bones are made of calcium. But it's not just any fat that our brains are made of. It has to be certain types of fats, and we no longer eat these types of fats like we used to. Worse, we eat man-made trans-fats and excessive amounts of saturated fats and vegetable oils high in Omega-6 fatty acids, all of which interfere which our body's attempt to utilize the tiny amount of Omega-3 fats that it gets.

Other parts of our bodies also need Omega-3 fatty acids. Symptoms of fatty acid deficiency include a variety of skin problems such as eczema, thick patches of skin, and cracked heels. In the fall of 1998, after reading about the Purdue study which associated fatty-acid deficiencies with learning disorders and hyperactivity, I began to give my six-year son a tablespoon of Flax Oil each day, and I took the same amount myself (mixed with yogurt).

Flax oil (NSP offers both liquid and softgel capsule)is extremely high in Omega-3's. I also reduced our consumption of trans-fats and increase the amount of olive and canola oil in our diet. After one month, the incurable eczema located on the back of my son's legs vanished, and it is still gone as of this writing (5/99). That eczema had not responded to diet changes, cremes, or allergy medication, and he'd had it for years, so bad that he would scratch it until it bled and caused him to lose sleep. Then, during the next three months my cracked heels slowly improved until they too were cured. Like my son's rashes, my cracked heels had not responded to any type of treatment for several years, even though I tried lotions and pumice stones to thin the skin. Today, they are fine. I can only imagine what the fatty-acid deficiency we clearly both had had was doing to me and my son neurologically, and I am grateful to have learned about it. My son has been doing great in Kindergarten with very few behavior problems, and is ahead of his peers in reading, so I can't help but wonder if the increase in Omega-3 fatty acids is a factor in that. While I'll never know for sure, I
suspect that it was.

Signs of Fatty Acid Imbalance (from the book "Smart Fats")
Dry skin
Dandruff
Frequent urination
Irritability
Attention deficit
Soft nails
Alligator skin
Allergies
Lowered immunity
Weakness
Fatigue Dry, unmanageable hair
Excessive thirst
Brittle, easily frayed nails
Hyperactivity
"Chicken skin" on backs of arms
Dry eyes
Learning problems
Poor wound healing
Frequent infections
Patches of pale skin on cheeks
Cracked skin on heels or fingertips

This information was forwarded to me by Jeff Frankel, a fellow NSP member, from North Fort Myers, Florida.