& Alzheimers?

Omega-3’s kept the mice’s brains working
A diet rich in omega-3 fatty acids slowed Alzheimer’s disease in mice, a new Canadian study suggested. The research provided the strongest evidence so far that “a deficiency in a specific dietary component could have a direct impact on a person’s risk of developing the neurological disease.”

Diet mattered to the brain of mice in the study; a diet that was poor in omega-3s, accelerated the process of Alzheimer’s, according to researchers. A number of previous studies had suggested that people who ate a diet rich in fish were less likely to develop Alzheimer’s and heart disease. Researchers guessed it was the omega-3’s that were responsible.

The new Alzheimer’s research, published in the medical journal Neuron, showed that one type of omega-3, called docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), seemed to keep synapses healthy. Synapses are the chemical connections between brain cells that enable memory and learning.

In this study, one group of mice was fed a soy and fish diet* and a second group a diet of safflower oil devoid of omega-3 fatty acids. After five months, researchers dissected the rodents’ brains to discover high amounts of synaptic damage in the brains of the Alzheimer’s-diseased mice that ate the DHA-depleted diet. They also found low levels of DHA in the brains of the mice and evidence of inflammation and cell damage caused by oxidative stress, conditions that DHA is known to protect against. The mice fed a diet poor in omega-3s also did poorly in memory tests, further evidence of brain damage.

Flax seed is a major source for omega-3 fatty acids
The study was partly funded by the Canadian Institute for Health Research. Source: Picard A. Study finds omega-3 can ward off Alzheimer’s. Toronto; Globe and Mail; Accessed: 2004 Sept. 3. (*Editor’s note: Flax is rich in alphalinolenic fatty acid, the parent omega-3 fatty acid. Humans convert some ALA to DHA. The efficiency of this conversion is the subject of current research. Nevertheless, chickens convert ALA quite well; chickens fed a diet of flax, convert ALA to DHA and deposit DHA in the eggs. The omega-3 enriched eggs are good sources of DHA. DHA is found naturally in fish such as salmon and sardines, and in fish-oil capsules. For more information on flax versus fish as a source of omega-3 fats, go to the Flax Council’s Web site, www.flaxcouncil.ca or download their Flax versus Fish fact sheet here.)