Treating ADHD in Adults with Micronutrients

Effect of a Nutritional Supplement on Attention and Mood in Adults with Attention Deficit/ Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD).

Brief Information about the study

Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) occurs in approximately 4-5 percent of the adults Almeida Montez, Hernandez Garca, & Ricardo-Garcell, 2007; Kessler et al. 2006) and a large proportion of these adults do not respond to treatment with medications (Biederman et al., 2006: Spencer et al., 2005; Torgersen et al., 2008).

In a recent open-label trial of a broad band nutritional supplement in the treatment of adults with ADHD and mood instability, participants showed improvements in hyperactivity, impulsivity and mood (Rucklidge et al., in press).

The purpose of the current study is to conduct a randomised controlled trial (RCT) to examine the helpfulness of this nutritional supplement in the treatment of adults with ADHD. Participants with ADHD take part in a 16-week trial. For the first eight weeks of the study, participants are randomly (i.e., like the toss of a coin) assigned to either the micronutrient pill group or the placebo pill group. For the following eight weeks, participants take part in an open-label (i.e., participants know what they are taking) trial. Blood and urine tests are taken at three times during the study to monitor participants’ safety. Measures of ADHD symptoms, mood, and pill compliance are taken throughout the study. Participants also take part in some activities to measure brain functioning and processing pre-randomisation and following the RCT phase of the study in order for researchers to examine the impact of the micronutrients on brain processing.

If you have any questions, or would like to know more about the study, please contact:

Dr Brigette Gorman (Research coordinator)

Phone: 03 3642987 ext 7191 (Monday – Thursday)
Email: mailto:brigette.gorman@canterbury.ac.nz

Associate Professor Julia Rucklidge (Principal investigator)

Phone: 03 3642987 ext 7959
Email: Julia.rucklidge@canterbury.ac.nz
Asking questions about the study does not commit you to taking part.

This research has been approved by the Human Ethics committee at the University of Canterbury and the Upper South A Regional Ethics Committee. Consultation regarding this research has also been sought from Te Komiti Whakarite.

Funding for this research comes from the University of Canterbury, private donations and from the Vic Davis Trust.

Professor Rucklidge is available to speak to the media after 7.30pm tonight and can be contacted on 027 538 4106.