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Eating fish 'lowers risk of memory loss and stroke'

05/08/2008

People who eat fish such as salmon and tuna at least three times a week could cut their risk of memory loss and stroke by over a quarter.

Fish-rich diets have been linked to a number of benefits, such as better heart health, but a study published today suggests fish high in omega-3 fatty acids can help brain function.

Researchers at University of Kuopio in Finland studied 3,660 healthy people aged 65 and older.

Using brain scans, they detected silent brain infarcts – small lesions in the brain that can cause loss of thinking skills, stroke or dementia.

Scans were performed again five years later on 2,313 of the participants. The people involved in the study were also given questionnaires about fish in their diets.

The study found that people who ate fish high in omega-3 fatty acids three times or more per week had a nearly 26 per cent lower risk of having the silent brain lesions compared to people who did not eat fish regularly.

Eating just one serving of this type of fish per week led to a 13 per cent lower risk. The study also found people who regularly ate these types of fish had fewer changes in the white matter in their brains.

"While eating tuna and other types of fish seems to help protect against memory loss and stroke, these results were not found in people who regularly ate fried fish," said Dr Jyrki Virtanen.

"More research is needed as to why these types of fish may have protective effects, but the omega-3 fatty acids EPA and DHA would seem to have a major role."

The study's findings are published in the journal Neurology.