I hope everyone had a great holiday!
In a recent blog I talked about the benefits of fish oil supplementation for weight loss. Well, it's time to add another benefit of fish oil to the ever-growing list. There's more and more research coming out showing that fish oil can reduce your risk of dementia. Two studies in the November issue of the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition are showing a relationship between intake of omega-3 fatty acids (the healthy fats found in fish oil) and cognitive performance in older adults.
In the first study, done in Norway, researchers found that elderly people who ate at least 10 grams of fish or fish products per day had better cognitive test scores than people who had less than this. There was a strong dose-dependent effect, meaning that the more fish or fish products the people ate, the better their test scores.
In the second study, done in the Netherlands, researchers found a relationship between omega-3 fatty acid levels in the blood and cognitive performance. The researchers measured omega-3 fatty acid levels in the blood, and then looked at cognitive performance 3 years later. Specifically, high levels of omega-3 fatty acids in the blood predicted a smaller decline in cognitive performance over the 3 years.
While neither of these studies can establish a cause/effect relationship, they are part of a growing body of research showing that fish oil is good for your brain. So, what is it about fish oil that makes it such good brain food? Well, docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), one of the main omega-3 fatty acids found in fish oil, accounts for 40% of the fatty acids that make up your brain cell walls. Thus, DHA is a critical component of your brain cells, and may help slow the loss of the neurons in your brain with age.
So if you didn't already have enough reasons to take fish oil, you've now got another one. Excuse me while I go get my brain food for the day...