Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2014 Feb 7;13(1):34.
doi: 10.1186/2251-6581-13-34.

Effect of low dose ω-3 poly unsaturated fatty acids on cognitive status among older people: a double-blind randomized placebo-controlled study

Mohammad Jafar Mahmoudi, Mona Hedayat, Farshad Sharifi  1 , Mojde Mirarefin, Neda Nazari, Neda Mehrdad, Mayam Ghaderpanahi, Yaser Tajalizadekhoob, Zohre Badamchizade, Bagher Larijani, Sudabeh Alatab, Mahtab Alizadeh, Seyed Masood Arzaghi, Baharak Najafi, Hossein Fakhrzadeh
Affiliations

Effect of low dose ω-3 poly unsaturated fatty acids on cognitive status among older people: a double-blind randomized placebo-controlled study

Mohammad Jafar Mahmoudi et al. J Diabetes Metab Disord. .

Abstract

Background: Cognitive impairment is a prevalent health problem in older people and its global prevalence tends to increase parallel to the extended life expectancy in world. The beneficial effect of ω-3 PUFAs on cognitive impairment has been demonstrated in some experimental and cohort studies. In this study we aimed to assess the effect of low dose docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) supplementation on cognitive status in the elderly.

Methods: In a double-blind, randomized placebo-controlled study, 199 individuals aged ≥65 years with normal or mild to moderate cognition impairment were assigned to receive either 180 mg of DHA plus 120 mg of EPA or placebo for 180 days. Cognitive status was assessed using Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) and Abbreviated Mental Test (AMT) score.

Results: MMSE and AMT scores were not different at the time of allocation [18.84 (5.37), 18.55 (5.12), (P = 0.70) and 4.81 (2.79) and 4.64 (2.77), (P = 0.67) respectively] and over 6 months between the ω-3 PUFA- and placebo- treated groups [18.57 (5.21), 18.39 (5.10), (P = 0.80) and 4.64 (2.77) and 4.48 (2.69) and (P = 0.67)]. The participants were categorized based on MMSE score into normal cognition, mild and moderate cognitive impairment. After multivariate adjustment, there was no significant difference among categorized groups regarding the ω-3 PUFA effect except in normal cognition group, that amount of decline in AMT in ω-3 poly unsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) was less than placebo group.

Conclusions: It seems that prescription of low dose ω-3 PUFAs for 6 months had no significant beneficial effects on improvement of cognition or prevention of cognitive decline in older people.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Flow diagram of progress through the study.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Ferri CP, Prince M, Brayne C, Brodaty H, Fratiglioni L, Ganguli M, Hall K, Hasegawa K, Hendrie H, Huang Y. Global prevalence of dementia: a Delphi consensus study. Lancet. 2006;366:2112–2117. doi: 10.1016/S0140-6736(05)67889-0. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Calon F, Cole G. Neuroprotective action of omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids against neurodegenerative diseases: evidence from animal studies. Prostaglandins Leukot Essent Fatty Acids. 2007;77:287–293. doi: 10.1016/j.plefa.2007.10.019. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Cederholm T, Palmblad J. Are omega-3 fatty acids options for prevention and treatment of cognitive decline and dementia? Curr Opin Clin Nutr Metab Care. 2010;13:150–155. doi: 10.1097/MCO.0b013e328335c40b. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Cole GM, Ma QL, Frautschy SA. Omega-3 fatty acids and dementia. Prostaglandins Leukot Essent Fatty Acids. 2009;81:213–221. doi: 10.1016/j.plefa.2009.05.015. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Riediger ND, Othman RA, Suh M, Moghadasian MH. A systemic review of the roles of n-3 fatty acids in health and disease. J Am Diet Assoc. 2009;109:668–679. doi: 10.1016/j.jada.2008.12.022. - DOI - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources