Playing fish can really protect your brain from air pollution?

July 29, 2020 // In a study published in the international journal "Erythrocyte omega-3 index, ambient fine particle and brain aging", scientists from Columbia University and other institutions found that if they could consume more than 1-2 servings of grilled fish or shellfish per week, older women may get enough omega-3 fatty acids to offset the adverse effects of air pollution on the brain.
Photo: Unsplash/CC0 Public Domain study of older women without dementia, analyzing whether LCn3PUFA ,an omega-3 fatty acid, modifies the neurotoxic effects of PM2.5 on normal brain volume, and recruited 1,315 people aged 65 to 80 In a study of women who did not have dementia, participants were given structural brain MRI scans, and the researchers completed a questionnaire on diet, physical activity and their own medical history, and found that among older women who lived with severe levels of air pollution, women with the lowest levels of omega-3 fatty acids in the blood had brain atrophy more significantly than those with the highest levels of omega-3 fatty acids.
M.D. Ka He points out that fish is a good source of omega-3 fatty acids, and that it is readily obtained from food, which helps to fight inflammation and maintain the structure of the aging brain, as well as reduce brain damage caused by neurotoxins such as lead and mercury, so we want to see if omega-3 fatty acids have protective effects against other neurotoxins, such as fine particles found in air pollution.
researchers used a diet questionnaire to calculate the average weekly intake of fish per woman, including grilled fish, canned tuna, tuna salad, tuna pot and non-fried shellfish, and fried fish were not included because studies have shown that the frying process destroys omega-3 fatty acids.
participants were then tested for blood, and they measured the levels of omega-3 fatty acids in their red blood cells, and then divided the participants into four groups based on the level of omega-3 fatty acids in their blood.
the researchers used the participants' home addresses to determine the average exposure levels of their three-year air pollutants, and then used MRIs to perform brain scans to determine the activity of different areas of the brain, including white matter and the hippocampus, which is made up of nerve fibers that send signals throughout the brain, a key part of the brain associated with memory.
after adjusting age, education, smoking and other factors that affect brain atrophy, the researchers found that women with the highest levels of omega-3 fatty acids in the blood had a larger volume of white matter in the brains of women with the highest levels of omega-3 fatty acids, with 410 cubic centimeters of white matter in the brains of the highest group of omega-3 fatty acids, and white matter volume in the lowest group. The researchers also found that for every quarter of an increase in air pollution levels, the volume of white matter in the brains of individuals with lower levels of omega-3 fatty acids in the blood decreased by an average of 11.52 cubic centimeters, while that of individuals with higher levels of omega-3 fatty acids decreased by an average of 0.12 cubic centimeters.
researchers say that women with the highest levels of omega-3 fatty acids in the blood are also larger in the hippocampus, and the results of this paper show that as women get older, the intake of fish increases or effectively preserves the volume of omega-3 fatty acids in the blood, while also helping to ward off the potential toxic effects of air pollution. The study found a link between brain capacity and fish intake, and does not prove that fish intake preserves brain capacity, and since separate studies have found that certain species of fish may contain some environmental toxins, individuals must first consult clinicians about what fish they should consume if they want to increase their intake of fish on their daily diet.
one limitation of the study was that most of the participants were white older women, so the results were not extended to other populations, and the researchers only tested the participants' exposure to air pollution in later life, not the participants' exposure to air pollution in their early or middle years, so in future studies the researchers will continue to study the overall exposure of air pollution during their lifetime.
() References: 1. Does eating fish fish fish health brains from air pollution? 2 Cheng Chen, Pengcheng Xun, Joel D. Kaufman, et al. Erythromet omega-3 index, t fine particle exposure and brain, doi: 10.1212/WNL.00000000000000000000000000000000000000000000074.