June 26, 2000 – According to a study which has just been published in the medical journal Alternative Therapies in Health and Medicine, the use of nutrients in children with learning difficulties can lead to marked improvement in academic performance.
There is already a lot of research supporting the idea that nutrients improve the performance of children with learning difficulties, but other studies have found no improvement. However, in their clinical practice, two of the authors of the present research had observed the positive effects of nutrients. The objectives of the research were to determine which nutrients had a positive effect and which could cause side effects, help to understand the possible mechanism of action of the nutrients and eliminate the possibility of a placebo effect.
The rationale for prescribing nutrients to children with learning disabilities is that it is possible to increase the level of neurotransmitters by saturating the enzymes responsible for their synthesis with their co-enzymes. Vitamin deficiency is not necessary to prescribe a nutrient. For example, it is known that pharmacological doses of pyridoxine (vitamin B6) make it possible to fight epileptic seizures in children whose pyridoxine level is otherwise completely normal. This type of problem is referred to as “vitamin-dependent states” rather than “vitamin-deficient”.
The research was carried out on 20 children aged 7 to 14 (14 boys and 6 girls) and lasted for four years. Each child received individualized treatment because the researchers observed side effects for several nutrients, even at moderate doses. For example, pyridoxine can cause peripheral nervous system damage (neuropathy) at a dose as low as 50 mg per day.
The nutrients used were divided into three groups: Group 1: chelated magnesium, pyridoxine (vitamin B6) and ascorbic acid (vitamin C); group 2: thiamine (vitamin B1), folic acid, chelated manganese and chelated zinc; group 3: L-tyrosine, L-glutamine, vitamin B3, linolenic acid, vitamin B12, pantothenic acid and coenzyme Q10. Nutrients in group three were prescribed only if no effects were observed with nutrients in the first two groups.
The results of the study showed that children’s academic performance was improved dramatically as long as they took in the nutrients, and that performance decreased when the nutrients were given up. However, nutrients have a long-term effect, as it wasn’t until a year after stopping supplementation that school performance began to decline.
The researchers also confirmed that megadoses are not necessary to cause a significant effect. On the other hand, all the children involved in this research experienced side effects from one or the other of the nutrients, thus confirming the importance of an individualized dosage and prescription. Another interesting observation: Manganese appeared to cause irritability in the first 3 children prescribed, suggesting that it may be contraindicated in children with learning disabilities. This observation is consistent with other research which has described the action of manganese on cathecholamines in the brain.
According to the researchers, the action of nutrients could be explained by their effect on the tree structure of dendrites, these trees allowing the brain’s synapses to connect to each other. The results of the study support the hypothesis that some cases of learning difficulties can be improved by the prescription of nutrients.
HealthPassport.net
Carlton RM, Ente G, Blum L, Heyman N, Davis W, Ambrosino S. Rational dosages of nutrients have a prolonged effect on learning disabilities. Altern Ther Health Med. 2000 May; 6 (3): 85-91.
