Fatty acids

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Omega-3 Fatty Acids: Good For The Heart, And (maybe) Good For The

Brain

2004-11-08

 

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2004/11/041108024221.htm

 

New York, NY (November 1, 2004) -- There is mounting evidence that a

diet containing omega-3 fatty acids, already known to help prevent

cardiovascular disease, may also prevent depression. In light of the

Food and Drug Administration (FDA)'s recent ruling that

antidepressants will be labeled with a " black box " warning about the

drugs' higher potential suicide risk in children,

NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center nutrition

experts call for further study of the mental health benefits of

omega-3 fatty acids.

 

" Given recent findings of serious risks linked with antidepressants,

we should prioritize the study of natural antidepressants contained

in dietary sources -- specifically, omega-3 fatty acids, found most

abundantly in fish and seafood, " says Dr. Barbara Levine, associate

professor of nutrition in clinical medicine at Weill Cornell Medical

College and director of the DHA Information Center at

NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell. Dr. Levine has been studying DHA

(docosahexaenoic acid -- a component of omega-3s) and its effects on

lowering triglycerides and raising HDL (high-density lipoproteins) in

overweight and obese patients with metabolic syndrome.

 

" Omega-3 consumption in the U.S. is lower than in any other country;

the U.S. also has one of the highest depression rates in the world, "

says Dr. Jeffrey Borer, chief of the division of cardiovascular

pathophysiology at NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell and Gladys &

Roland Harriman Professor of Cardiovascular Medicine at Weill Cornell

Medical College. " New research has linked omega-3 consumption

inversely with incidence of neurological and immune disorders.

However, further research among all age groups and populations is

necessary in order to confirm these findings and to further educate

the public. "

 

The relation of omega-3s -- principally DHA and EPA (eicosapentaenoic

acid) -- and depression has been revealed in several studies

worldwide. In a large Finnish study of fish consumption and

depressive symptoms, published in Psychiatric Services in April 2001,

Tanskanen, et al. demonstrated that the likelihood of having

depressive symptoms was significantly higher among infrequent fish

consumers than among frequent fish consumers. They theorized that the

human brain is adapted to Paleolithic diets of our ancient ancestors,

whose diet comprised equal proportions of omega-3 fatty acids and

omega-6 fats (found in corn and soy seed oils). In the past 100

years, Western diets have lowered the ratio of omega-3 to omega-6 to

about 1:25; simultaneously, the prevalence of major depression has

increased.

 

In the 2003 Rotterdam Study, published in the American Journal of

Clinical Nutrition, Tiemeir, et al. found that elderly persons with

depression had a fatty acid composition different from that of

non-depressed persons. Percentages of omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty

acids (PUFAs) were significantly lower, and the ratios of omega-6 to

omega-3 PUFAs were significantly higher in subjects with depressive

disorders than in control subjects.

 

Dr. Joseph R. Hibbeln of the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and

Alcoholism, part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH),

discovered that omega-3 may influence serotonin functionality in the

brain. In a letter published in The Lancet in April 1998, he reported

that among healthy volunteers, low plasma concentrations of DHA

predict low concentrations of a marker of brain serotonin turnover.

Low concentrations of serotonin are strongly associated with

depression and suicide.

 

DHA is a primary building block in the gray matter of the human brain

and in the retina of the eye, and is present in every cell in the

body. It is essential at every stage of human life, beginning in

utero. DHA, like EPA, must be derived from foods because the body

cannot produce its own supply. It is available in fish and as a pure

pharmaceutical-grade nutritional supplement, with an ideal ratio of

omega-3s to omega-6s (10:1).

 

At the Food and Drug Administration's Psychopharmacologic Drugs and

Pediatric Advisory Committees meeting on Sept. 13 and 14, committee

members and relatives of children with depression heard testimony

based on an analysis by an international panel of pediatric suicide

experts of data from 15 clinical studies on the use of SSRI

(Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitor) antidepressants in children

and teens with major depressive disorder (MDD). They also heard from

industry representatives of the companies who manufacture the

medications. Dr. Tarek Hammad, a Senior Medical Reviewer in the

Department of Neuropharmacological Drug Products, Center for Drug

Evaluation and Research, Food and Drug Administration, reported that

there was a consistent link between antidepressants and suicidal

thoughts and behavior (suicidality) among 2 to 3 percent of the

subjects in the studies.

 

As a result of the hearings and recommendations by the joint

committees, on Friday, Oct. 15, the FDA announced that it will direct

manufacturers to add a " black box " warning to the health professional

labeling of all SSRI antidepressant medications to describe this risk

and emphasize the need for close monitoring of patients started on

these medications. The FDA will also develop a Patient Medication

Guide (MedGuide), which will be given to patients receiving the drugs

to advise them of the risk and precautions that should be taken.

 

Editor's Note: The original news release can be found here.

http://www.news.cornell.edu/releases/Nov04/omega-3.html

 

This story has been adapted from a news release issued by Cornell

University.

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o00o0o0o0o0o0o0o0less Bush, more trees0o0oo0o0o00o0o0o0o0o

The difficult place that the U.S. is in can not be diminished by waging

more wars. The violence done in our name generates more violence

and hatred against us. The solution arises from changing our attitudes

about other people. We need to stop the theft of their resources and

labor and begin to treat others with respect and dignity. RossCannon