Citation

Gajos JM, Beaver KM. Neurosci. Biobehav. Rev. 2016; 69: 147-158.

Affiliation

College of Criminology and Criminal Justice, Florida State University Tallahassee, FL 32306-1127, USA; Center for Social and Humanities Research, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2016, Elsevier Publishing)

DOI

10.1016/j.neubiorev.2016.07.017

PMID

27450580

Abstract

Evidence suggests that omega-3 fatty acids are important for a variety of mental health outcomes and have been shown to improve both mood and behaviors. However, there is little consensus on whether omega-3 fatty acids are beneficial for reducing aggressive behaviors. The current study assesses the relationship between omega-3 fatty acids and aggression. A total of 73 effect sizes were calculated among 40 studies involving 7,173 participants from both intervention and observational research designs. Effect sizes were separately meta-analyzed for two-group comparison studies (SMD=.20), pre-post contrast studies (ESsg=.62), and associational studies (r=-.06), in the fixed-effect model.

RESULTS from the random-effects model also suggest a range of effects of omega-3 fatty acids on reducing aggression (SMD=.24; ESsg=.82; r=-.09). Patterns in the relationship between omega-3s and aggression were additionally observed. Moderator analyses indicated that the effect of omega-3s on aggression is conditioned by how aggressive behaviors are measured, such as through self-report or parent/teacher surveys.

Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Language: en