Fatty Acid Trip

Charles P. Vega, MD, FAAFP reports on best evidence approaches for depression, anxiety and related issues for women in middle age:
Summary
Depression affects women disproportionately compared with men, and symptoms of psychological distress may be particularly prevalent during the perimenopausal period. The current study of ethyl-eicosapentaenoic acid for the management of psychological distress among middle-aged women […]

A comprehensive review of studies on the benefits of omega-3 consumption has led scientists to recommend the establishment of a Dietary Reference Intake (DRI) for EPA and DHA to reduce the risk of heart disease.
The strength of evidence linking eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) to a reduced risk of coronary heart disease was […]

Two Canadian reports suggest that highly purified ethyl-eicosapentaenoic acid (E-EPA) omega-3 fatty acid supplementation may alleviate hot flushes and psychological distress in middle-aged women. The daily dosage was 1,050 grams in both trials.
The departments of Psychiatry and Obstetrics and Gynecology gynecology at Saint-François d’Assise Hospital (Centre Hospitalier Universitaire de Québec) Canada investigated the effects of […]

New research from Trinity College Dublin published in this month’s Annals of Surgery points to a potentially significant advance in the treatment of patients undergoing major cancer surgery.
The study was carried out by the oesophageal research group at Trinity College Dublin and St James’s Hospital. A randomised controlled trial showed omega-3 fatty acids given as […]

OK… This one I simply could not resist, courtesy of CNN.com:
(CNN) — The benefits to humans of omega 3 fatty acids in fish oils are well documented, but a new study has found that fish oils can have a wider benefit to the environment — by reducing the amount of methane produced by cows.
The report […]

With aging and vascular disease, arterial elasticity diminishes, bringing with it increased risk of hypertension, stroke and cardiovascular mortality. The consumption of omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (n-3 PUFAs), both long-chain docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and medium-chain alpha-linolenic acid, has modest blood pressure-lowering effects, but there is limited information about their effects on arterial elasticity. In a […]

Various studies have implicated low fish consumption or reduced blood levels of long-chain omega-3 fatty acids (n-3 LC-PUFAS) in the occurrence of various psychiatric disorders, alcoholism and among substance abusers. It has been known since 1996 that n-3 PUFAs, especially eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), are reduced in major depression. A recent post-mortem analysis reported significantly lower […]

Long-chain omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (n-3 LC-PUFAs) have been used as an adjunct therapy in treating patients with major depressive disorder with mixed, but often encouraging, results. A meta-analysis of placebo-controlled trials concluded that n-3 PUFAs have significant antidepressant effects, but there are insufficient data to distinguish whether combined treatment with the two major n-3 […]

US scientists have reported that the stable nitrogen isotope 15N may be a suitable biomarker to analyse blood levels of EPA and DHA intake in clinical and epidemiologic studies.
Scientists from the University of Alaska Fairbanks and the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle report that the ratio between 15N and 14N is elevated in […]

Readers of the PUFA Newsletter may recall the JELIS trial conducted among hypercholesterolemic patients treated with statins to lower their low-density lipoprotein cholesterol. Half the participants received 1.8 g/day of eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) with their statin medication. Five years later, patients taking both a statin and EPA incurred significantly fewer major coronary events, such as […]

New research conducted by researchers at the University of Navarra, Iceland and University College Cork, published in the journal, Appetite, [i] suggests that taking omega-3 whilst following a weight loss programme makes people feel fuller for longer, helping to reduce appetite.
The results of this research provide useful information for the nutritional treatment of obesity, in […]

Natalie Sinn, a researcher mentioned in this post is continuing her work in researching the benefits of PUFAs. The announcement follows:
A new study at UniSA’s Nutritional Physiology Research Centre will test the benefits of fish oil on memory and mood in older people.
UniSA researcher Dr Natalie Sinn is looking for volunteers aged 65 or over who […]

North American children do not receive enough omega-3 in their diets, according to new research which found only 22 percent of young children received adequate amounts of the long-chain omega-3 fatty acids, DHA and EPA.
The researchers from the University of Guelph in Ontario found daily consumption of EPA (eicosapentaenoic acid) at 38.4mg and DHA (docosahexaenoic […]

Although there are many reasons why people develop major depression, the condition is more frequent in younger than older adults. Nonetheless, it is a concern in the aging population. In the elderly, depression is more likely to occur in those with impaired cognition and in certain disturbances of endocrine metabolism. Depression also occurs more frequently […]

Various studies have reported that consumption of fish or fish oils may affect vascular function in ways that increase forearm blood flow and arterial elasticity, while reducing blood pressure. However, there is some disagreement about the effects on vascular relaxation of docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), a long-chain omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid (n-3 LC-PUFA), in spite of […]

Many studies have reported a variety of desirable outcomes in children whose mothers ate fish during their pregnancy compared with children whose mothers did not eat fish. More recently, studies have noted better childhood performance scores when their mothers ate more fish than is recommended by the US government, i.e., more than 340 g (12 […]

For reasons we do not understand, fish and fish oil consumption, which protects against heart disease mortality and sudden cardiac death, has little effect on the occurrence of nonfatal heart events in western populations. This is not the case among the Japanese, who consume nearly 10 times as much fish as westerners. The Japanese also […]

Children and adolescents with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) often have other behavioral problems, such as learning difficulties, reading or writing abnormalities, motor coordination, defiant behavior and others. In addition, it has been noted often that the pattern of polyunsaturated fatty acids in their blood differs from children without this disorder. In particular, ADHD children […]

Minami Nutrition’s fish oil products were among the highest rated for purity by independent testing organization, Consumer Labs. Thanks, CL for confirming what we’ve know all along!
Here’s the press release:
The popularity of fish oil supplements has been growing exponentially over the past several decades. As more studies tout the benefits of the supplements containing omega-3 […]

Don’t like seafood? You can still get your heart-healthy omega-3s. A new study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition shows that, when it comes to providing omega-3 fatty acids, fish oil supplements are just as good as actually eating fish.
Experts tested a group of 23 women ages 21 to 49. Each participant ate […]