Omega 3 - does it really 'work'??

[fartmeistergeneral]

OK, I'm at the end of my tether (again!). My ds8 is in his room - sent to his room. I'm considering putting him back on omega 3 capsules but it's soooo expensive. I THINK it made a difference last time....... any one else got any opinions?

He's a normal 8 year old, moody, frustrated, no attention span, easily upset, unfocussed.

I hate shouting, but I'm doing it on a daily basis!

Have to get him ready for school now, but will check on this later..

They work for ds and seem to help with his temper as well as his concentration. They are expensive though. We buy Efalex from Boots when they have a 3 for 2 offer on.

Yes, it's the temper thing that I remember it helping with. He's always on a knife edge. He has just blown up at his little brother (tears and everything) because he (his brother) wouldn't describe the roll he had for lunch today!!!!

Sorry to be dull but did very, very extensive research into this area for work and there's nothing scientific about the benefits of Omega 3 for "normal" children. The only genuine research suggests it mayhelp very very distrubed kids with severe behavioural problems, and I mean severe. Also possibiities for some conditions in the elderly but largely it's based on very well purveyed myth and word of mouth and bogus health experts opinions.

Every expert and nutritionist I spoke to said that Omega oils are an esential part of a healthy diet but that the pills are outrageously expensive, sometimes mixed with other stuff, ie the capsule itself etc and that you're better off tyring to get your kids to eat oily fish once a week and they'd get the same amount and more health benefits to boot. Equally some of the additives in Omega supplements to make them palatable for kids can often be heaving with additives etc, so even though the fish oil looks natural, the other bits aren't, ditto with vitamins. If you do it read all labels very very carefully and make sure you're not revving your kids up with hidden ingredients. The upshot of my research is that the healthy welathy are the most likely to supplement their kids diets with vitaminsa nd fish oil etc and that these kids ar th least likely to need it. I knwo you didn't ask for all this, I got carried away - sorry!

Anyway, the upshot is that the for me the words Snake oil come to mind ...

If you don't hate me for saying it and can be arsed, Omega 3 on the Guardian website under their Bad Science column. They have a cheeky dr who writes the column called and the Omega 3 thing absolutley enrages him for passing itself off as science, when there are so few decent, genuine trials etc and the things they prove aren't what the manufacturers of the supplements then claim. Dr Ben Goldacre, wwwbadscience dot net, can't do links - sorry.