Posted on 07/26/2023 8:30:16 PM PDT by ConservativeMind
Omega-3 fatty acids, which are abundant in fish and fish oil supplements, appear promising for maintaining lung health, according to new evidence from a large, multi-faceted study in healthy adults.
The study provides the strongest evidence to date of this association and underscores the importance of including omega-3 fatty acids in the diet, especially given that many Americans do not meet current guidelines.
There's increased interest in trying to understand whether nutritional interventions could contribute to lung disease prevention efforts. Past studies have suggested that omega-3 fatty acids may help, due largely to their established anti-inflammatory actions. However, robust studies of this association have been lacking, until now.
To learn more, researchers developed a two-part study investigating the link between omega-3 fatty acid levels in the blood and lung function over time.
The longitudinal study showed that higher levels of omega-3 fatty acids in a person's blood were associated with a reduced rate of lung function decline. The researchers observed the strongest associations for docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), an omega-3 fatty acid that is found at high levels in fatty fish such as salmon, tuna, and sardines. DHA is also available as a dietary supplement.
The researchers analyzed genetic data from a large study of European patients (more than 500,000 participants) from the UK Biobank. They studied certain genetic markers in the blood as an indirect measure, or proxy, for dietary omega-3 fatty acid levels to see how they correlated with lung health. The results showed that higher levels of omega-3 fatty acids—including DHA—were associated with better lung function.
For now, the researchers point out that the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommends that people eat at least two servings of fish per week, which most Americans fall far short.
(Excerpt) Read more at medicalxpress.com ...
Salmon tops the list in Omega 3 as far as I’ve seen, and especially sockeye.
Interesting study with reliable sample size n=500,000.
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