Effect of a nutritional supplement on attention and mood in adults with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder

There is very little research into the impact of complementary alternative medicines (CAM) on psychiatric illness yet thousands of New Zealanders use CAM as part of their treatments for all types of ailments. This study aims to investigate one type of CAM called Empowerplus (a micronutrient formula with 36 ingredients). Overseas studies are promising in that Empowerplus has been found to be effective in the treatment of Bipolar Disorder in adults, established through open-series designs, with the suggestion it may improve overall mood stability. However, to date no study has investigated its effect on attention or self-regulation despite the fact that thousands of families seek alternative treatments for ADHD. This study aims to do a pilot trial of MCN-36 with 25 ADHD adults with mood instability to investigate feasibility issues and initial impact of Empowerplus on attention and mood to determine if a larger scale trial should be launched.