Omega-3 Lowers Risk of Alzheimers
Omega-3 oils, fish, fruits and vegetables may protect your memory
Nov 17, 2007
On the other hand, too much omega-6 rich oil could increase your chances of developing these memory problems, according to a study published in the November 13, 2007, issue of Neurology.
The four-year study by Dr Pascale Barberger-Gateau and his team at INSERM, the French National Institute for Health and Medical Research, in Bordeaux, France, compared the diets of 8,085 men and women over the age of 65. None of the participants suffered from dementia at the beginning of the study.
At the end of the four years, 183 participants had developed Alzheimer’s disease and 98 were suffering from another form of dementia.
Omega-3 oils and fish reduce Alzheimer’s risk
Dr Barberger-Gateau's study showed that the people who regularly consumed omega-3 rich oils, such as canola oil, flaxseed oil and walnut oil, had reduced their risk of dementia by 60 percent compared to those who did not regularly have such oils in their meals.
Fish is also important, as the study showed that people who ate fish at least once a week had a 35-percent lower risk of developing Alzheimer's disease and 40-percent lower risk of dementia.
Dr Barberger-Gateau has been researching the links between what people eat and their risk of developing dementia and Alzheimer's for several years.
His earlier research on the importance of fish in the diet was published in the British Medical Journal in 2002
Avoid too much omega-6 oil
However, the study also showed that the people whose diets were high in omega-6 oils such as corn, sesame, soybean and sunflower or grape seed oil, but ate insufficient quantities of omega-3 rich oils, or didn’t eat fish, were twice as likely to develop dementia compared to those who didn’t eat omega-6 rich oils.
Dementia-protective fruit and vegetables
The French study also showed that the people who ate fruits and vegetables daily reduced their risk of developing dementia by 30 percent compared to those whose diet did not regularly include fruits and vegetables.
Dr Barberger-Gateau said these results could have significant health benefits for most people, as only a minority of the population carries the gene that increases the risk of Alzheimer's, apolipoprotein E4, or ApoE4.
Unfortunately for people with ApoE4, eating fish or omega-3 oils does not seem to reduce their risk of developing the condition.
More research needed into protective foods
Dr Barberger-Gateau said these apparently protective foods needed further research to understand their mechanisms.
“While we’ve identified dietary patterns associated with lowering a person’s risk of dementia or Alzheimer's, more research is needed to better understand the mechanisms of these nutrients involved in these apparently protective foods,” he said in his paper.
For more on this topic, see Ways to Avoid Alzheimer's
See Also: The Cardio-protective Benefits of Weekly Fatty Fish
Ways to Eat More Fruit and Veg
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