Tan, May Loong, Ho, Jacqueline J, Teh, Keng Hwang

About 5% of schoolchildren have a specific learning disorder, defined as an unexpected failure to acquire adequate abilities in reading, writing or mathematic skills not as a result of reduced intellectual ability, inadequate teaching or social deprivation. Of these, 80% are reading disorders. Polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs), in particular omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids, which are found abundantly in the brain and retina are important for learning. Some children with specific learning disorders have been found to be deficient in these PUFAs, and it is argued that supplementation of PUFAs may help these children improve their learning abilities.