Omega 3 Fatty Acids Help Preserve Cognitive Functioning

In a study featured in Neurology, 1,613 subjects were examined between the ages of 45 and 70, testing the correlation between Omega-3 consumption and the preservation of cognitive abilities. Mental functioning was gauged on multiple measures by researchers (memory, psychomotor speed, higher-level information processing and overall cognition), and participants completed a food consumption questionnaire to record their eating patterns, especially as their diets related to intake of fatty fish.

Consumption of long-chain polyunsaturated Omega-3 fatty acids derived from fish was positively associated with a reduced risk of mental impairment, both on measures of overall cognitive function and psychomotor speed. Researchers also noted a significant correlation between higher consumption rates of cholesterol (saturated fats) and an increased risk of impaired memory and cognitive flexibility.

The researchers concluded that Omega-3’s may benefit cognitive performance due to their anti-inflammatory properties. The researchers further speculate that the diminished cognitive performance associated with lower intake of Omega-3’s may be a predictor of Alzheimer’s Disease later in life.

“Dietary intake of fatty acids and fish in relation to cognitive performance at middle age.” Neurology. 2004 Jan 27;62(2):275-80.

Eating Fish Lowers the Risk of Dementia

French researchers conducted an extensive, seven-year study to investigate correlations between consumption of fish (high in polyunsaturated fatty acids) or meat (high in saturated fatty acids) and the risk of developing dementia, including Alzheimer’s Disease. Subjects, who were aged at least 68 with no symptoms of dementia, recorded their consumption rates of these items. Researchers collected data at two, five and seven years following the start of the study.

Over the entire period in question, subjects who ate fish once per week or more had dramatically lower incidences of cognitive decline. Researchers speculated that in addition to providing vascular protection, the essential fatty acids (Omega-3’s) found in fish might be responsible for diminishing inflammation of brain tissue. They further hypothesized that Omega-3’s may play an important part in the development of the brain and the regeneration of nerve cells.

“Fish, meat, and risk of dementia: cohort study.” British Medical Journal, 2002; 325; 932-933.

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