The effects of omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids on the cognitive neuroscience of ADHD

This thesis explored the effects of supplementation with essential fatty acids on cognitive performance, cardiovascular function, and brain activation in young adults with and without ADHD. While no overall cognitive differences were detected after supplementation, differences were measured between the two time points, with EPA-rich supplementation leading to more improvements than DHA-rich supplementation. This is contextualised using the theory of neural efficiency, in which people work smarter not harder. This thesis provides further evidence for the theory of neural efficiency, demonstrated through the differences in neural activity while completing the Stroop task between ADHD participants and control participants.