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Open WellbeingWhat the studies actually measured

Mood, stress and thinking

Omega-3 fatty acids (EPA/DHA)and ADHD symptom severity

Only one source here so far, and it reported mixed results for ADHD symptom severity.

How sure anyone can be

Low certainty, level 2 of 4

Further research is likely to change this.

The numbers reported

One source’s range, drawn against its own line of no difference and scaled to its own numbers.

-0.32-0.17 standardised effect size-0.02

This range stays on one side of the no-difference line.

Bar the confidence interval — the range the true effect is likely to sit inNotch the number the source reportedLine where there would be no difference at all

One source, newest first

What we read is the published abstract, not the full paper, so a blank below may still be printed in the paper itself. A fixed rule worked this out from the source’s own fields. Nobody checked this rating by hand.

  • Systematic review, 2021 · 23 studies pooled

    Low certainty, level 2 of 4

    Efficacy and Safety of Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids Supplementation in the Treatment of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) in Children and Adolescents: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Clinical Trials.

    Nutrients. 2021;13(4). doi:10.3390/nu13041226. PMID:33917727.

    Number reported
    -0.17 standardised effect size
    Which way it went
    Mixed results
    Likely range
    -0.32 to -0.02
    Source’s own words
    standardised mean difference in parent-rated ADHD core symptoms vs control
    Who was studied
    Child and adolescent with ADHD
    Compared with
    placebo/control
    Amount taken
    Not in the abstract
    For how long
    Not in the abstract
    Disagreement between studies
    Not in the abstract
    Kind of record
    Journal article
    How this rating was reachedstarts at High, 2 steps down: imprecision and inconsistency
    1. Starts at High
    2. Imprecision brought it down to Moderatethe abstract does not state how many participants were pooledNot in the abstract
    3. Inconsistency brought it down to Lowpooled studies disagree on the direction of effectReported in the abstract
    4. Ends at Low2 steps down.
    Checked, nothing to step it down for
    risk of bias and indirectness

    Imprecision stops at the first check that applies; others may apply too.

    AI review could not confirm it — an AI agent re-read this finding against the saved source and at least one check failed. The batch record names the check and quotes the sentence that caused the doubt. No person read it.

    Read the abstract on PubMed

What is still missing from these readings

  • One do not say how many people took part.
  • Amount taken — Not in the abstract.
  • For how long — Not in the abstract.

Something nobody wrote down is never a zero and never a guess.

Still to read for Omega-3 fatty acids (EPA/DHA)

Seven of the 19 things on our list for Omega-3 fatty acids (EPA/DHA) have no reading here yet:

  • Alanine aminotransferase (ALT)
  • Cognitive performance
  • Gestational length
  • HDL cholesterol
  • Heart rate variability (RMSSD)
  • High-sensitivity CRP
  • Resting heart rate

Still to read means nobody here has got to it, not that it was tried and did nothing or that no research exists. A pairing on no list is not a gap: we never set out to read it.

Read next

This is a library, not advice. No recommendation, no dose, no diagnosis, no ranking. We never ask about your symptoms, and nothing here is tailored to you.