Nutrition

August 8, 2014 — Thicker, stronger, and more resilient. Once a week is all it takes, new research says.

Have you ever considered undergoing brain-thickening surgery, only to find that such a thing does not exist? And that the guy in the van was probably not actually a surgeon? Well, consider fish.

Dr. Cyrus Raji, a resident radiologist at UCLA, appreciates value beyond the cosmetics of a thick cerebral cortex. He's the lead researcher in a new study in the current American Journal of Preventive Medicine that found that people who regularly eat fish have more voluminous brains than those who do not—in such a way that stands to protect them from Alzheimer's disease.

"Understanding the effects of fish consumption on brain structure is critical for the determination of modifiable factors that can decrease the risk of cognitive deficits and dementia," Raji and colleagues write. The team has previously shown gainful effects of physical activity and obesity on brain structure.

This study found that eating fish—baked or broiled, never fried—is associated with larger gray matter volumes in brain areas responsible for memory and  cognition in healthy elderly people.

"There wasn't one type of fish that was the best," Raji told me by phone, probably while eating fish. "All that mattered was the method of preparation." Fried fish had a unique dearth of benefits to the brain.

"If you eat fish just once a week, your hippocampus—the big memory and learning center—is 14 percent larger than in people who don't eat fish that frequently. 14 percent. That has implications for reducing Alzheimer's risk," Raji said. "If you have a stronger hippocampus, your risk of Alzheimer's is going to go down."

"In the orbital frontal cortex, which controls executive function, it's a solid 4 percent," Raji said. "I don't know of any drug or supplement that's been shown to do that."

Speaking of supplements, the researchers initially looked to omega-3 fatty acids as the driver of these benefits. But when they looked at the levels of omega-3s in people's blood, they didn't correlate with better brain volumes.

"These findings suggest additional evidence that it is lifestyle factors—in this case, dietary intake of fish," the researchers write, "and not necessarily the presumed biological factors that can affect the structural integrity of the brain."

Read the full story at The Atlantic

 

NEW YORK — August 5, 2014 — “Our study shows that people who ate a diet that included baked or broiled, but not fried, fish have larger brain volumes in regions associated with memory and cognition,” said James T. Becker, a professor of psychiatry at University of Pittsburgh’s school of medicine.

Baked or broiled fish once a week is good for your kid’s brain, regardless of how much omega-3 fatty acids it contains, says a study.

“Our study shows that people who ate a diet that included baked or broiled, but not fried, fish have larger brain volumes in regions associated with memory and cognition,” said James T. Becker, a professor of psychiatry at University of Pittsburgh’s school of medicine.

They found that people who ate baked or broiled fish at least once a week had greater grey matter brain volumes in areas of the brain associated with memory (4.3 percent) and cognition (14 percent).

They were more likely to have a college education than those who did not eat fish regularly.

But no association was found between the brain differences and blood levels of omega-3 fatty acids.

Read the full story at VancouverDesi

 

July 18, 2014 — The following is a clip from the syndicated television show, “The Doctors”:

Watch the video here

 

July 18, 2014 — The following is a clip from the syndicated television show, “The Doctors”:

Watch the video here

 

July 16, 2014 — Regular use of fish oil supplements may significantly reduce cognitive decline and improve brain function in older adults, says a study.

The study by researchers at Rhode Island Hospital examined the relationship between fish oil supplements during the US Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative (ADNI) and indicators of cognitive decline.

In this retrospective study, older adults were assessed with neuropsychological tests and brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) every six months.

Read the full story from Business Standard

July 16, 2014 — Regular use of fish oil supplements may significantly reduce cognitive decline and improve brain function in older adults, says a study.

The study by researchers at Rhode Island Hospital examined the relationship between fish oil supplements during the US Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative (ADNI) and indicators of cognitive decline.

In this retrospective study, older adults were assessed with neuropsychological tests and brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) every six months.

Read the full story from Business Standard

NEW YORK (IANS) — July 13, 2014 — Including cold water oily fish, such as salmon, herring, mackerel, anchovies, sardines and other foods that are rich in omega 3 fatty acids may keep your joints healthy even if you are overweight, a study suggests.

"Our results suggest that dietary factors play a more significant role than mechanical factors in the link between obesity and osteoarthritis," said Farshid Guilak, a professor at the Duke University in the US.

Mice consuming a supplement of omega 3 fatty acids had healthier joints than those fed diets high in saturated fats and omega 6 fatty acids, the findings showed, indicating unhealthy dietary fats — not just obesity — may contribute to worsening osteoarthritis.

Read the full story from IANS

NEW YORK (IANS) — July 13, 2014 — Including cold water oily fish, such as salmon, herring, mackerel, anchovies, sardines and other foods that are rich in omega 3 fatty acids may keep your joints healthy even if you are overweight, a study suggests.

"Our results suggest that dietary factors play a more significant role than mechanical factors in the link between obesity and osteoarthritis," said Farshid Guilak, a professor at the Duke University in the US.

Mice consuming a supplement of omega 3 fatty acids had healthier joints than those fed diets high in saturated fats and omega 6 fatty acids, the findings showed, indicating unhealthy dietary fats — not just obesity — may contribute to worsening osteoarthritis.

Read the full story from IANS

July 10, 2014 — In 2004 the FDA and the EPA advised women who are pregnant, those who might become pregnant and those who are breastfeeding to limit their consumption of fish to no more than 12 ounces weekly. This was done to protect the fetus from high levels of mercury which is present in some levels in all fish.

Women may have taken this advice too seriously — more than one-fifth of women had eaten no fish in the month previous to an FDA analysis conducted.

Additionally, more than 50 percent of women ate less than two ounces per week.

We have discovered that this decreased fish consumption is a problem since there are definite health benefits between fish consumption during pregnancy and children's growth and neurobehavioral development. This is linked to high levels of beneficial omega-3 fatty acids. Recent studies have found that in order to reap these health benefits, pregnant and breastfeeding women should eat at least 8-12 ounces weekly of fish lower in mercury levels.

– Here are the guidelines & recommendations from the FDA:

– Eat 8-12 ounces of a variety of fish per week. Thats 2-3 servings a week

– Choose fish lower in mercury: salmon, shrimp, pollock, tuna ( light canned), tilapia, catfish, and cod

– Avoid 4 types of fish: tilefish from Gulf of Mexico, shark, swordfish and king mackerel

– Limit white albacore tuna to 6 ounces per week

– When adding fish to your diet, be sure to stay within your recommended caloric needs

Read the full story at the New Bedford Standard-Times

ORONO, Maine — June 27, 2014 — Researchers with the university’s Sustainability Solutions Initiative uncovered data on women’s knowledge of both the risks and health benefits of eating fish while pregnant. Mario Teisl, a professor in the School of Economics, will discuss results of two studies as a featured speaker at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s 2014 National Forum on Contaminants in Fish in September, according to a news release from UMaine.

The studies — which were published in two peer-reviewed journals — are among the first to examine how information about methylmercury, an organic compound in fish, is conveyed and interpreted by pregnant women in specific states, according to UMaine.

The first study, published in 2011 in the journal Science of the Total Environment, found that an advisory issued by the Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention led women to eat less fish.

Instead of limiting fish high in mercury and switching to other types containing less of the toxin, many pregnant women turned away from all fish.

Read the full article at The Bangor Daily News