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Reach a healthy old age by eating plenty of fish

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"Anti-ageing" effect of fish oils

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First published: Oct 18, 2018

Summary: Omega-3 oils enhance health as you age

Looking into the prospect of not only living longer lives (which is a growing trend around the world) but also living these years in good health, a research team led by Heidi Lai studied the long term effect on aging of a group of fatty acids called omega-3.

This study (Heidi Lai et al. ,2018) (1) found that those who eat fish and therefore increase their intake of healthy omega-3 fats in seafood have a higher chance of healthy aging.

healthy dish, salmon
Salmon is rich in health promoting omega-3 oils

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) (2) webpage has plenty of information on the omega-3 fatty acid content of foods so that you can consider including them in your diet.

Omega-3 fatty acids

Omega-3 (or n3-PUFAs - Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids) are present in oily fish and some seed oils such as flax, chia, and rapeseed oil.

Lai's team followed a group of 2,622 older adults who took part in the U.S. Cardiovascular Health Study over fourteen years, from 1992 to 2006.

The study's participants had an average age of 74.4 years.

They defined healthy aging as surviving into old age without suffering from chronic diseases such as cancer, cardiovascular, lung, or kidney disease, and also maintaining cognitive and physical abilities.

They measured the blood concentrations of n3-PUFAs and found that those subjects that had higher levels of them "[had] an 18% lower risk... of unhealthy aging."

Some fatty acids within the omega-3 group impacted more than others on healthy aging:

  • Higher eicosapentaenoic acid (or EPA) and docosapentaenoic acid (DPA) reduced the risk of unhealthy aging by 15% and 16% respectively.
  • Docosahexaenoic acid (or DHA) had no impact on the aging risk.
  • α-linolenic acid from plants was not associated with adding or reducing risk.

The takehome point seems to be that certain seafood oils (not all of them and not α-linolenic acid from plants) can help you live in better health as you age.

Tip: Include more fish in your diet

Fish such as mackerel, herring, tuna, halibut, salmon, and cod liver contain EPA. You can find DPA in Atlantic mackerel, Florida pompano, Pacific herring, sablefish, whitefish, bluefin tuna, and rainbow trout (and also in seal meat and blubber -but they aren't part of Western diets!).

Those subjects who ate two servings of fish each week had the lowest "aging risk."

The healthy omega-3 oils in nuts and seeds did not seem to report advantages to those consuming them but were not a disadvantage either.

Regarding vegetable oils, Lai reported that "α-linolenic acid from plants was not noticeably associated with unhealthy aging."

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References and Further Reading

(1) (1) Heidi TM Lai, et al., (2018). Serial circulating omega 3 polyunsaturated fatty acids and healthy aging among older adults in the Cardiovascular Health Study: prospective cohort study. BMJ 2018; 363 doi: https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.k4067 (Published 17 October 2018), BMJ 2018;363:k4067

(2) NIH. Updated: February 15, 2023 . Omega-3 Fatty Acids. Fact Sheet for Health Professionals. Accessed: 08.Sept.2023

About this Article

Reach a healthy old age by eating plenty of fish, A. Whittall

©2019 Fit-and-Well.com, 18 Oct. 2018. Update scheduled for 08 Sept. 2026. https://www.fit-and-well.com/health/news-longevity-and-fish-oil-Oct-18-2018.html

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Tags: aging, aging, healthy aging, fish oil benefits, omega-3, PUFAs, heart disease, diet, health news

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