Category Archives: Fish

October 28, 2009 · 2:03 PM

THIS Week, Fish Consumption is Linked to Lower Diabetes Risk

stuffed salmon
Salmon, one of the oily fish

Just weeks after I reported about fish consumption being linked to higher risk of type 2 diabetes, a different study reports the opposite.

The Norfolk, England, wing of the European Prospective Investigation of Cancer found a 25% lower risk of developing diabetes in adults who ate one or more servings of fish weekly, compared with those who ate less than that.  What kind of fish?  White fish and oily fish. 

Contradictory results like this are not uncommon in the field of science. 

Steve Parker, M.D.

Reference:  Patel, P., et al.  Association between type of dietary fish and seafood intake and the risk of incident type 2 diabetes.  The EPIC-Norfolk cohort study.  Diabetes Care, 32 (2009): 1,857-1,863.

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October 20, 2009 · 6:54 PM

Fish Consumption Linked to Type 2 Diabetes

CB064567A recent study suggests that fish intake may modestly increase the risk of developing type 2 diabetes. 

Harvard researchers examined the dietary habits of over 195,000 study participants over the course of at least 14 years.  Increasing consumption of fish and long-chain omega-3 fatty acids (mostly from fish) was linked to a higher onset of type 2 diabetes—up to 24% higher comparing the lowest with the highest consumers.

Implications

This is a preliminary research finding and requires validation by other studies.  The study authors write:

Given the beneficial effects of LCFA [long-chain fatty acids] intake on many cardiovascular disease risk factors, the clinical relevance of this relation and its possible mechanisms require further investigation.

At this point, I believe that the benefits of reasonable omega-3 fatty acid and fish consumption outweight the possible risk of developing type 2 diabetes.

Steve Parker, M.D.

References: Kaushik, M., et al.  Long-chain omega-3 atty acids, fish intake, and the risk of type 2 diabetes mellitus.  American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 90 (2009): 613-620.

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August 20, 2009 · 2:00 AM

Fish Linked to Lower Dementia Risk, Once Again

Brain food

Brain food

Older adults in low- to middle-income countries seem to have a lower risk of dementia if they regularly eat fish, according to a new study in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.

This comes on the heels of another recent study questioning the anti-dementia protective effect of fish consumption.

Almost 15,000 people were surveyed in China, India, Cuba, Domincan Republic, Mexico, Peru, and Venezuela.  As fish intake increased – from never, to some days of the week, to most or all days of the week – dementia prevalence dropped by 19% for each increase of intake.  Data for the effect were less convincing for Indian populations. 

The prevalence of dementia also tended to rise with meat consumption.

Steve Parker, M.D.

Reference:  Albanese, Emiliano, et al.  Dietary fish and meat intake and dementia in Latin America, China, and India: a 10/66 Dementia Research Group population-based study.  American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 90 (2009): 392-400.

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