A study of Yup’ik Eskimos in Alaska, they consume on average 20 times more omega-3 fish that people in the lower 48 states, suggests that a high intake of these fatty acids help to prevent obesity-related chronic diseases like diabetes and heart disease.And ‘interesting, we found that obese people with high blood levels of omega-3 fatty triglycerides and CRP concentrations showed that differ from those of normal weight, said Makhoul. It turns out that a high consumption of omega-3 rich seafood Eskios Yup’ik protected some of the negative effects of obesity.
Yup’ik Eskimos have while levels of overweight / obesity similar to those of the United States in general, the prevalence of type 2 diabetes is much lower – 3.3 per cent against 7.7 per cent.
There are good reasons to increase your intake of fatty fish, such as the now-established the association of fish consumption with reduced risk of heart disease, said Makhoul. But we have learned many other studies that nutritional supplementation in very high doses is often more harmful than helpful.
Fat, the researchers were interested to measure are those that are found in salmon, sardines and other fatty fish: docosahexaenoic acid or DHA and eicosapentaenoic acid or EPA.
While genetics, lifestyle and dietary factors may explain this difference, said Makhoul, it is reasonable to ask, according to our results, if the decline in the prevalence of diabetes in this population could be attributed, at least in part to high consumption of omega-3 rich fish.
Because the traditional Yup’ik Eskimos have a diet includes large amounts of fatty fish and have a prevalence of overweight or obesity, which is similar to that of the general population of the United States, was an opportunity just to see if omega-3 to modify the association between obesity and risk of chronic diseases, said lead author Zeina Makhoul, Ph.D., a postdoctoral researcher in the prevention program of the Science Division of Public Health Center Hutchinson Cancer.
The National Center for Research Resources and National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases National Institutes of Health funded the study, which also involved researchers from the University of California-Davis.
For the study, participants provided blood samples and health information through personal interviews and questionnaires. Diet was assessed by asking participants what they ate in the last 24 hours and asking them to keep a food diary for three consecutive days. Height, weight, body fat %age, blood pressure and physical activity were measured.
These results are similar to those seen in people who live in the 48 who have low blood levels of EPA and DHA, said lead author Alan Kristal, Dr. PH, a member of the Hutchinson Center Public Health Sciences Division. However, the conclusion was that obesity did not increase these new risk factors among study participants with elevated blood levels of omega-3 fats, he said.
The researchers analyzed data from a study of 330 communities of people living in the Yukon Kuskokwim Delta of southwest Alaska, 70 % of them were overweight or obese. As expected, the researchers found that among participants with low blood levels of DHA and EPA, obesity has increased significantly in both blood (abnormal blood lipids) and triglycerides of C-reactive protein, or CRP (a measure of general inflammation in the body). High levels of triglycerides and C-reactive protein increases the risk of heart disease and possibly diabetes.
If the results of these tests were positive, strongly suggests that omega-3 can help prevent obesity-related diseases, like heart disease and diabetes, he said.
Based on these results, should people who are overweight and obese people concerned about the risk of chronic diseases start popping supplements of fish oil or fish eating more fat?