Efalex - Natural Remedies for ADD / ADHD

This is a combination of a fish oil and evening primrose oil, which I am informed can be bought at most Boots Chemists and if effective, direct from manufacturers.
Shelley Johnston writes......

"Just a quick note to pass along, we have found effalex to be ineffective for Jeffrey and are currently looking for alternatives. I have tried Pycnogenol with out much success but I must say it helped my older son who suffers from adhd but in a much less severe fashion."

Joanne Hall writes......

"We live in Vancouver , Canada. Our 9 year old son is ADD. He has been taking ritalin for 18 months now with marked improvement in his academic peformance. About 3 months ago, we began giving him Efalex Focus. Since then we have noticed that he is more cooperative, less argumentative and less upset when things don't go his way. Since the ritalin is out of his system when we are with him in the evenings, and he doesn't take it on weekends we will continue giving him the efalex focus and hope that it continues! "

Gordon writes......

"Efalex works % 100 on our friends thirteen yr. old son ,contrary to some ill informed people.His parents gave him tablets without telling him why and in one weeks time he was a "new boy". Enough said"

Catherine writes......

"I've done a great deal of research on natural remedies. My son is a gifted kid with ADHD, 9 years old.

EFAs (Omega 3, fishoil, primrose oil) He did best on a Max DHA supplement, I switched him at some point to a Max EPA supplement, and he got in trouble every day that week in school. I think fishoils that have vitamin E or supplements like Efalex with only DHA are the best. When I first started him on EFAs, the next morning he got up and fixed his own breakfast. My sister's kid actually did his homework on the way home in the car (homework is something she had to really nag him to do). Overall, I'd have to say he matured a good 6-8 months once he started taking these."

In addition to the above information you should also be aware of the following...

Supplement firms to settle charges on ADHD claims
May 15, 2000
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Two manufacturers of dietary supplement products touted as helping to manage or cure attention deficit disorder (ADD) or attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) have agreed to settle Federal Trade Commission (FTC) charges that the claims they made for their products lacked adequate scientific substantiation, the FTC said.

The companies, Boston-based Efamol Nutraceuticals and Massena, Iowa-based J&R Research, would be prohibited by the proposed agreements from making certain claims about their products without adequate substantiation.

Efamol markets two supplements containing essential fatty acids, Efalex and Efalex Focus, which the company has promoted in a series of magazine advertisements.

One Efalex ad claims that studies "show that some children with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder... have problems converting essential fatty acids into the long chain forms the body needs to maintain optimum eye and brain function."

"Only Efalex provides the precise combination of these important fatty acids--G.A., DHA and AA--to properly manage this deficiency," the ad states.

Another ad asserts that "nutritional research conducted at a major American university" has backed up the essential fatty acid deficiency theory for ADHD.

To promote its pycnogenol supplement for ADD/ADHD, J&R Research--a general partner in the Longmont, Colorado-based multi-level distributorship Kaire International--created advertising materials that it sold to Kaire distributors.

Pycnogenol "is becoming a very attractive first-line method of choice by many physicians, in preference to conventional drug administration" for children with attention disorders, the materials state. "Also, in most cases, traditional drug therapy can usually be discontinued--or significantly reduced--provided the patient continues to consume pycnogenol."

The FTC noted that the two new agreements represent the agency's third and fourth cases involving products marketed to treat ADHD. Companies advertising unsubstantiated treatments for the condition "prey on a vulnerable population of parents who seek a 'natural' alternative to prescription medications," such as Ritalin, according to a statement released by the agency.