Skip to content
Winnowleaf home

Condition

Breath Holding Spells

Breath-holding spells are involuntary episodes in which a young child, usually between 6 months and 6 years old, stops breathing after crying from pain, frustration, or a scare, sometimes turning blue or pale and briefly fainting. They are not voluntary or manipulative. Little research on supplements for them has been reviewed here so far, so there are no trial findings to report yet. Iron is the supplement most often discussed, because low iron is closely linked to these spells.

Supplements studied
1
Graded outcomes
0
Trials
3
People studied
171

Evidence by supplement

  • Strong
  • Moderate
  • Limited
  • Very limited

1 supplement

Piracetam: outcomes studied for Breath Holding Spells
GradeOutcomeEffectSizeStudiesPeopleStudies list
Breath Holding Spell EpisodesImproves (the measure goes up)3 studies171 people

Studies that measured breath holding spell episodes

The Breath-Holding Spells in Children protocol

1 primary supplement · 3 supporting supplements

  • Iron3–6 mg/kg elemental iron daily (as prescribed by pediatrician)

See the full protocol

Studies cited

3 studies from PubMed

  1. Clinical efficacy of piracetam in treatment of breath-holding spellsPediatr Neurol · PMID 9492090
  2. Piracetam in severe breath holding spellsInt J Psychiatry Med · PMID 18724570
  3. Double-blind, placebo-controlled trial on the effect of piracetam on breath-holding spellsEur J Pediatr · PMID 22302459