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Randomized Controlled Trial
. 2022 Feb 18;14(4):852.
doi: 10.3390/nu14040852.

Use of Nutritional Supplements Based on L-Theanine and Vitamin B6 in Children with Tourette Syndrome, with Anxiety Disorders: A Pilot Study

Renata Rizzo  1 , Adriana Prato  1   2 , Miriam Scerbo  1 , Federica Saia  1 , Rita Barone  1 , Paolo Curatolo  3
Affiliations
Randomized Controlled Trial

Use of Nutritional Supplements Based on L-Theanine and Vitamin B6 in Children with Tourette Syndrome, with Anxiety Disorders: A Pilot Study

Renata Rizzo et al. Nutrients. .

Abstract

Background: Tourette syndrome (TS) is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by tics and co-occurring disorders. It has been suggested that anxiety occurs in 2-45% patients affected by Tourette syndrome. Despite dietary and nutritional factors have been found to affect a range of neurological conditions, no more studies have investigated the relationship between nutritional supplements and tics.

Objective: To evaluate the effectiveness of supplementation of both L-Theanine and Vitamin B6 in reducing tics and co-occurring disorders in a sample of youth with chronic tic disorder (CTD) or Tourette syndrome with anxiety symptoms.

Design: A open-label trial. Patients affected by Tourette syndrome were randomized to receive nutritional supplements based on L-Theanine and vitamin B6, or psychoeducation (PE).

Participants: 34 children (30 boys and 4 girls) aged between 4 and 17 years affected by Tourette syndrome or chronic tic disorder, associated with anxiety symptoms.

Results: Patients in both groups showed a reduction in the severity of tic and anxiety symptoms. Supplementation with L-Theanine and vitamin B6 was significantly more effective than psychoeducation in reducing tics and co-occurring disorders, as measured by neuropsychological findings.

Conclusions: Supplementation of both L-Theanine and Vitamin B6 may help in the treatment of tic disorders associated with anxious symptoms. Between-group differences in clinician-rated severity did reach statistical significance only for tics. Despite this finding, further placebo-controlled trials are needed.

Keywords: L-theanine; Tourette syndrome; anxiety; nutrients; nutritional supplements; psychoeducation; vitamin B6.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
YGTSS and MASC scores between clinical groups.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Patients who achieved a clinical response from baseline (T0) at T1.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

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