Omega fatty acid supplements may improve ASD symptoms in toddlers born preterm, study shows

In continuation of my update on omega fatty acids

Researchers from Nationwide Children's Hospital have shown that omega fatty acid supplements may improve autism spectrum disorder symptoms in toddlers who were born very preterm (more than 11 weeks early). The study was published recently in the Journal of Nutrition.

"The trial had two goals. First, we wanted to confirm the feasibility of a large study of toddlers born very preterm and exhibiting symptoms often seen with ASD. Second, we wanted to see what the effects of omega fatty acids would be on parent-reported ASD symptoms and related behaviors," says Sarah Keim, Ph.D., lead author on the study and principal investigator in the Center for Biobehavioral Health in The Research Institute at Nationwide Children's.

Dr. Keim and her team conducted a study where 31 toddlers who were born prematurely participated. For 3 months, half of them took a daily dietary supplement that contained a special combination of omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids, and the other half took a placebo, although families were unaware of which they received to make the study rigorous.

The group that took the daily omega fatty acid supplement exhibited a greater reduction in ASD symptoms than those who took the placebo, according to ratings provided by the children's parents.

"We found clinically significant improvements in ASD symptoms in the treatment group, although the benefits were confined to one measure we used," explains Dr. Keim. "We need to do a larger trial to further understand the potential impacts on a larger group of children."

The researchers suggest that observed benefits of omega fatty acid supplementation could be due to the role of these nutrients in inflammation in the body. ASD is generally considered a neuroinflammatory condition, and influencing inflammation through nutritional supplementation could improve behaviors in children with ASD symptoms.

Researchers hope that by giving omega fatty acids to children early when they first show symptoms and the brain is still actively developing may help them long-term.

"Currently, no medications are available to help children born prematurely with the developmental delays and behavior problems they often experience. For very young children, the medications that physicians sometimes try tend to have many side effects. And we don't know what effect those medications have on brains that are still developing," says Dr. Keim. "If using omega fatty acid supplementation helps, it would have a really huge impact for these kids."

Dr. Keim and her team plan to expand the work in a full-scale trial in the future. They recently received a grant from the National Institutes of Health to study the effect of omega fatty acids in children ages 2-6 year who have ASD.

Ref : https://academic.oup.com/jn/article-abstract/148/2/227/4913038?redirectedFrom=fulltext

Omega fatty acid supplements may improve ASD symptoms in toddlers born preterm, study shows

Fish Oil Pills Might Cut Diabetes Risk....

Supplements, also known as omega-3 fatty acids, increase levels of a hormone called adiponectin that's linked to insulin sensitivity, Harvard researchers found. Higher levels of this hormone in the bloodstream have also been linked to a lower risk for heart disease.

"While prior animal studies found fish oil increased circulating adiponectin, whether similar effects apply in humans is not established," the study's lead author, Jason Wu, from the Harvard School of Public Health, said in a news release from the Endocrine Society.

For their study, the researchers conducted a "meta-analysis" of 14 clinical trials. A meta-analysis reviews existing research and attempts to find a consistent pattern. In this case, the studies that were reviewed were all randomized, placebo-controlled trials, which is considered the gold standard in research.

"By reviewing evidence from existing randomized clinical trials, we found that fish oil supplementation caused modest increases in adiponectin in the blood of humans," Wu explained.

Overall, the new study looked at 682 people who took fish oil supplements, and 641 who were given placebos such as sunflower or olive oil.

Among the people treated with fish oil, adiponectin levels increased by 0.37 micrograms per milliliter of blood. This hormone plays a beneficial role in processes that affect metabolism, such as blood sugar regulation and inflammation.

Because the effects of fish oil varied significantly in the studies analyzed, the researchers suggested that omega-3 fatty acids could have a stronger effect in certain groups of people. The investigators concluded that more research is needed to determine which people would benefit most from fish oil supplements.

"Although higher levels of adiponectin in the bloodstream have been linked to lower risk of diabetes and coronary heart disease, whether fish oil influences glucose [blood sugar] metabolism and development of type 2 diabetes remains unclear," Wu said.

More - Read at

Fish Oil Pills Might Cut Diabetes Risk, Researchers Say - Drugs.com MedNews

Unequivocal evidence that omega-3 fatty acids reduce breast cancer risk

In continuation of my update on omega-3-fatty-acids

Unequivocal evidence that omega-3 fatty acids reduce breast cancer risk

Omega-3 supplementation improves working memory in young adults

In continuation of my update on omega fatty acid

University of Pittsburgh researchers led by Rajesh Narendran of the Department of Radiology tested the effects of a supplement providing 930 milligrams eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and 750 milligrams docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) in 11 men and women between the ages of 18 and 25. Evaluation of working memory (via an "n-back test"), positron emission tomography (PET) imaging of the brain and tests for red blood cell fatty acid levels were conducted before and after the six month treatment period.

Participants experienced an increase in plasma omega-3 fatty acid levels and improvement in working memory at the end of six months. "What was particularly interesting about the presupplementation n-back test was that it correlated positively with plasma omega-3,"observed Bita Moghaddam, whose lab conducted the research. "This means that the omega-3s they were getting from their diet already positively correlated with their working memory."

"Before seeing this data, I would have said it was impossible to move young healthy individuals above their cognitive best," he remarked. "We found that members of this population can enhance their working memory performance even further, despite their already being at the top of their cognitive game."

Although the researchers had suggested increases in dopamine storage and a protein involved in decision making in a particular area of the brain as mechanisms supporting omega-3's effect on cognitive function, PET scan results failed to support the hypothesis. "It is really interesting that diets enriched with omega-3 fatty acid can enhance cognition in highly functional young individuals," Dr Narendran commented. "Nevertheless, it was a bit disappointing that our imaging studies were unable to clarify the mechanisms by which it enhances working memory."

Consumption of long-chain omega-3 PUFAs lowers risk of colorectal polyps in women

In continuation of my update on omega fatty acids

Consumption of long-chain omega-3 PUFAs lowers risk of colorectal polyps in women: New research finds that omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) found in seafood (long-chain omega-3s) may reduce the risk of precancerous colorectal polyps in women, enhance the muscular benefits of strength training in older women and improve eye health after corneal surgery.