Eat Fish to Reduce Dementia Risk

(Ivanhoe Newswire) -- If you want to keep you mind sharper as you age, take another look at the catch of the day. A new study reveals eating fish is important in reducing one's risk for dementia.

The nine-year study looked at the association between docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) levels in the blood and dementia. DHA is an omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid found in fish.

Researchers from the U.S. Department of Agriculture Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging at Tufts University in Boston studied participants from the Framingham Heart Study to determine if there is a connection between DHA and dementia. The 899 participants each provided blood samples, underwent neuropsychological testing every two years, and were followed for an average of nine years. None of the participants had dementia at the beginning of the study.

Investigators report 99 of the participants developed dementia, including 71 with Alzheimer's disease. Researchers divided the participants into four groups based on DHA levels. They found those with the highest DHA levels had a 47-percent lower risk of developing any type of dementia, and a 39-percent lower risk of developing Alzheimer's disease compared to the other three groups. The high DHA group reported eating an average of three fish servings a week, which is more than those in the other three groups.

Researchers conclude the correlation between DHA in the blood and fish intake was significant, indicating fish is an important source of dietary DHA.

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SOURCE: Archives of Neurology, 2006;63:1545-1550