No cognitive benefits in seniors taking fish oil supplements
The largest ever trial of fish oil supplements has found no evidence that they offer benefits for cognitive function in older people.
The Older People And omega-3 Long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (OPAL) study investigated the effects of taking omega-3 long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acid supplements over a two year period on the cognitive function of participants aged 70-80 years.
The OPAL study has been published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, was a randomised controlled trial led by Alan Dangour, Senior Lecturer at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine and colleagues.
After two years, those participants receiving fish oil capsules had significantly higher levels of omega-3 fatty acids in their blood than those participants receiving placebo capsules.
However, cognitive function did not change over the course of the study in either group of participants and there was no evidence that the consumption of omega-3 fatty acids had a benefit for cognitive function in older people.
Dr Alan Dangour urges caution in interpreting these results, “From the data we have collected in the OPAL study there is no evidence of an important benefit for memory or concentration of increased omega-3 fatty acid consumption over a two year period among older people with good cognitive health.
“However, it is important to keep in mind that poor cognitive function can take many years to develop and although this is the longest trial of its kind ever conducted, it may be that it was not long enough for any true beneficial effects to be detected among this healthy cohort of older people.”
