Vitamin–mineral treatment of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder in adults: double-blind randomised placebo-controlled trial

Study answer

What this study found

Broad-spectrum micronutrient treatment showed preliminary benefit for adult ADHD symptoms over 8 weeks and was generally well tolerated. CAARS DSM-IV ADHD symptoms improved in the micronutrient group on self-report (79.4 to 67.3, p=0.009) and observer report (69.5 to 61.4, p=0.026), and clinician-rated CGI-I-ADHD also favored treatment (2.8 to 2.83, p=0.020). Overall impression improved and functioning improved on GAF (58.7 to 64.5, p=0.045), while MADRS was not significant (17.2 to 11.5, p=0.078) and LIFE-RIFT was not significant (10.5 to 11.6, p=0.292). There were no group differences in…

Study & population

Double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled trial in adults with ADHD in Canterbury, New Zealand.

Intervention

EMPowerplus, a broad-spectrum micronutrient formula containing vitamins and minerals, was taken orally at 15 capsules per day in three doses of 5 capsules with food and water for 8 weeks.

Key limitation

The active arm was small (n=42) and treatment lasted only 8 weeks, which limits precision and long-term interpretation.

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Original abstract