Food and Behaviour Research

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4 Sep 2013 - FAB EVENT - Omega-3 DHA for Child Behaviour and Learning

ORGANISED BY FOOD AND BEHAVIOUR RESEARCH

Start Date: 04 September 2013

End Date: 04 September 2013

Duration 10.00 - 3.00

Location 35-43 Lincoln’s Inn Fields, London WC2A 3PE

Venue Royal College of Surgeons

Programme and Abstracts:

A document with the programme, speaker details and abstracts, summarising the content of the day's presentations may be downloaded at the link below.

About the event:

FAB Research held this special invitation-only symposium where researchers from the DHA Oxford Learning and Behaviour (DOLAB) Studies came together with other leading experts and stakeholders to give their unique perspectives and discuss the very latest research findings and their implications for future research, policy and practice.

'Omega-3' has become a 'hot topic' - but much of the media coverage it attracts tends to generate more heat than light, especially in relation to children's behaviour and learning.  At this event, the audience learned what 'Omega-3' really means, which of these fats are most important, and why, and what the very latest evidence actually shows.

The symposium was chaired by Lucy Jones, Registered Dietitian and Presenter of Channel 4's The Food Hospital.

What was discussed:

  • Why is Omega-3 DHA uniquely important for children's behavioural and cognitive development - and what's the real evidence?
  • What is the Omega-3 status of UK school children - and how is this likely to affect their health, wellbeing and performance, both now and in the future?
  • What is needed next, in both research and practice?  And what's the real world context in whch priorities and practicalities must be balanced?
  • Working with children, families and schools - what do parents and professionals most want and need to know, and who should be telling them?

FURTHER REFERENCES:

Research papers:

Montgomery et al 2013 - Low Blood Long Chain Omega-3 Fatty Acids in UK Children Are Associated with Poor Cognitive Performance and Behavior: A Cross-Sectional Analysis from the DOLAB Study

Richardson et al 2012 - Docosahexaenoic Acid for Reading, Cognition and Behavior in Children Aged 7-9 Years: A Randomized, Controlled Trial (The DOLAB Study)