Vol. 12, No. 3, 2006 Page 2


SIMPLE NUTRITIONAL THERAPY REDUCES SYMPTOMS OF ADHD

A combination of vitamin B6 and magnesium can markedly reduce the symptoms of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), according to a recent French study.

Marianne Mousain-Bosc and colleagues evaluated the response of 40 children with ADHD to eight weeks or more of treatment with B6 and magnesium (6 milligrams per kilogram per day of magnesium and 0.6 milligrams per kilogram per day of vitamin B6). The researchers evaluated the children's symptoms before and after the intervention and measured their levels of intraerythrocyte magnesium (Erc-Mg).

Mousain-Bosc and colleagues report that B6/magnesium treatment, if continued for at least two months, significantly reduced hyperactivity, agitation, and aggression and improved school function in nearly all participants. Initial Erc-Mg levels were lower in ADHD participants than in controls, and treatment caused Erc-Mg levels to rise, although not to the levels of the control group.

Children with ADHD who exhibited the highest initial Erc- Mg levels showed the greatest improvement. This suggests, the researchers say, that the initial level of depletion affects how quickly children improve.

When the researchers withdrew B6/magnesium treatment at the end of the study, ADHD symptoms returned within a few weeks and Erc-Mg levels dropped.

The researchers say their findings are consistent with earlier research implicating intracellular magnesium deficiency in ADHD, and with clinical and anecdotal evidence that many children with ADHD improve when taking B6 and magnesium. While magnesium is typically viewed as an adjunct treatment used to enhance B6 therapy, the researchers say their results indicate that magnesium itself has potent anti-ADHD effects.

In a recent interview in Le Journal Santé, Mousain-Bosc noted that she and her colleagues have now treated nearly 140 young ADHD patients with combined B6 and magnesium, some for as long as three years, and "the results are very encouraging."

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"Improvement of neurobehavioral disorders in children supplemented with magnesium-vitamin B6. I. Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder," M. Mousain-Bosc, M. Roche, A. Polge, D. Pradai-Prat, J. Rapin, and J. P. Bali, Magnesium Research, Vol. 19, No. 1, March 2006, 46-52. Address: Jean-Pierre Bali, Explorations Fonctionnelles du Systeme Nerveux, Centre Hospitalier Universitaire Caremeau, Nimes, France.

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