Thursday, March 27, 2008

Docosahexaenoic acid or DHA

DHA is an appealing PUFA (poly-unsaturated fatty acid) delivered by fish oil. French investigators theorize that this PUFA or omega-3 fatty acid becomes incorporated into the cell membranes of neurons. Once embedded in the cellular surface, DHA may protect against the injurious effects of beta-amyloid, the protein fragment that gums up the brainworks in Alzheimer's disease.

And in clinical news, a decade long study of Boston old fogies* showed a 48% decrease in the incidence of AD among those who had the highest levels of DHA from their regular intake of fatty fish.

Lead author, Tufts scientist Dr. Ernst Schaefer had this to say "These dramatic results show how older adults can play a significant role in their neurological health by increasing their intake of fish, fish oil or especially, DHA."
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*Arch Neurol. 2006 Nov;63(11):1545-50.

1 comment:

Mauigirl said...

Fatty fish are our favorites! I had salmon last night, in fact...Fingers crossed this really works!