Does Omega-3 Help After All in Autism Spectrum Disorder? An Update Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Trials
Sánchez-García I, Sánchez-Quesada C
Nutrients · 0 citas
Cómo se estudió
- Diseño
- Metaanálisis (indexado por PubMed)
- Estudiado en
- Personas
- Resultado principal
- Marcadores de salud y funcionamiento
Quién lo pagó
- Financiación
- Financiación independiente
Según la declaración de financiación del texto completo.
Publicación
- Publicado
- 2026-08-28 · Nutrients · vol. 18 · número 17 · pág. 2821
- Editorial
- Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute
- Citado
- 0 citas · más que el 59% de estudios similares · 0.0× el promedio de su campo
- Referencias
- 31 trabajos
- Acceso
- Acceso abierto (revista) · CC-BY
- Áreas de investigación
- Fatty Acid Research and Health · Autism Spectrum Disorder Research · Child Nutrition and Feeding Issues
- Palabras clave
- autism spectrum disorder, omega-3 supplementation, irritability, social withdrawal, stereotypy, hyperactivity, behavioral symptoms, neuroinflammation, outcome harmonization, complementary therapy, publication bias, heterogeneous effects, subgroup analysis
- MeSH
- humans, fatty acids, omega-3, treatment outcome, dietary supplements, child, child, preschool, randomized controlled trials as topic, autism spectrum disorder
2 autores
- Inmaculada Sánchez-García🇪🇸Universidad de Jaén
- Cristina Sánchez‐Quesada🇪🇸 · autor de correspondenciaUniversidad de Jaén
Resumen
El texto original del estudio, en el idioma en que se publicó.
Background/objectives
Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) affects approximately 60 × 104 incident cases, 283.3 × 105 prevalent cases, and 43.1 × 105 DALYs globally and is frequently accompanied by irritability, hyperactivity, and social withdrawal linked to low-grade neuroinflammation. Omega-3 supplementation is among the most common complementary approaches used by families, but clinical evidence remains inconsistent, and prior meta-analyses have relied on a single outcome instrument. This study aimed to evaluate the efficacy of omega-3 supplementation on ASD-associated behavioral symptoms by harmonizing outcomes across multiple validated instruments.
Methods
Twelve randomized controlled trials (number of studies per domain: k = 6-12) were identified through a systematic search of ten databases (CRD420261390092). Outcomes from eight instruments (ABC, CGI-I, BASC-2, SRS/SRS-2, GARS-2, CARS/SDQ, VABS/PLS-4/PDDBI, and CBCL) were mapped onto five behavioral domains: Irritability, Lethargy/Social Withdrawal, Stereotypy, Hyperactivity, and Inappropriate Speech/Communication. Random-effects models (REML, Knapp-Hartung adjustment) pooled Hedges' g for each domain, with fixed-effects, subgroup, and PET-PEESE publication-bias sensitivity analyses.
Results
Significant pooled effects favoring omega-3 supplementation were observed for Irritability (g = -0.287, 95% CI [-0.562, -0.013], p = 0.043) and Inappropriate Speech/Communication (g = -0.213, 95% CI [-0.363, -0.063], p = 0.010). Lethargy/Social Withdrawal, Stereotypy, and Hyperactivity showed trivial-to-small, non-significant effects. Heterogeneity was negligible (I2 ≤ 0.83%) in four domains; Hyperactivity showed moderate heterogeneity (I2 = 37.86%). Sensitivity analyses confirmed robustness, and no evidence of publication bias was detected.
Conclusions
Expanding synthesis beyond a single outcome instrument revealed statistically significant, though clinically modest, benefits of omega-3 supplementation on irritability and communication symptoms in ASD, effects undetectable in prior smaller, single-instrument analyses. These findings support its consideration as a low-risk adjunctive option, while larger, adequately powered trials remain needed to confirm clinical relevance.
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