As they get older, most people experience mild memory loss; an inability to think quickly, lapses in attention and concentration and difficulties in language use.

Although these changes are usually not disease related and occur along with a number of other common age related body changes, they can hamper one’s ability to perform demanding everyday memory tasks and can severely interfere with work for those in intellectually demanding careers.

This type of change in brain function is called age related cognitive decline (ARCD) or mild cognitive impairment (MCI). It affects nearly half of people between ages 50 and 59 years and its prevalence increases with age. However, an even greater concern is that 80% of those diagnosed with ARCD will develop a more severe brain disorder called Alzheimer’s disease within 6 years.1

Fortunately, the rate of this decline can be slowed by physical and mental exercise and especially proper nutrition.

The proof
In recent years, some clinical studies have reported that omega-3 fatty acid supplementation may help prevent ARCD in normal, healthy ageing adults.  All of these studies were scientifically well designed to ensure unbiased results by randomly assigning patients to take capsules either with or without omega-3 fatty acids (called a placebo-controlled study) and ensuring that neither the patients nor their doctors knew which treatment was being taken (called a double-blind study).

Research revealed
The first trial included 49 healthy women and men aged 22 to 51 years who were divided into two groups2.  One group was given a fish oil supplement containing 1.6 g of eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and 0.8 g of docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) per day, while the other group was given a dummy pill (placebo) that did not contain any omega-3 fatty acids.

After 35 days of treatment, those taking omega-3s were better able to control their anger including verbal outbursts.  In addition, they had less anxiety, fatigue and depression and had increased vigour. These improvements (that did not occur in the placebo group) were directly correlated with increased omega-3 content in their blood.

The next double-blind, placebo-controlled study included 21 men and women of about 68 years of age with ARCD3.  After 90 days, those taking 240 mg/day of DHA had significant improvements in memory and attention compared to those treated with placebo.

Another study1 included 23 people with mild or moderate Alzheimer’s disease and 23 with ARCD that took either 1.8 g/day of Omega-3s (1080 mg EPA + 720 mg DHA) or a placebo for 24 weeks.  Brain function tests performed at the start of the study and at weeks 6, 12, 18 and 24 showed that improvements were more apparent in people with ARCD than in those with Alzheimer’s Disease.

Those results tells us that supplementation needs to be started early in life to prevent development of more severe forms of memory decline.

Last year, a larger study included 302 healthy adults aged 65 years or older that took either a low dose of 400 mg Omega- 3 (226 mg EPA+ 176 mg DHA), or high dose of 1800 mg Omega-3 (1093 mg EPA+847 mg DHA) or a placebo for 26 weeks4.

Brain function was measured at the start of the study and after 13 and 26 weeks to assess attention, sensorimotor speed (the speed at which nerves can send messages), memory and executive function (organizational skills). The levels of EPA and DHA in the blood were also measured before and after treatment with levels increasing by 238% and 51% in the high dose and low dose groups, respectively compared to placebo.

The most notable brain function improvements were seen in men and in people who had an inherited trait making them prone to develop hardening of the arteries, memory loss and Alzheimer’s disease.

What now?
Results of these studies look promising and point the way to discovering greater benefits in the future. Cognitive decline takes years to become apparent and yet omega-3 supplementation achieved improvements that could be measured within a few weeks.

So, could eating enough omega-3s every day throughout life prevent ARCD in most people?

How to help yourself
Efalex Active 50+, the first fish oil supplement specifically designed for the over 50s, contains a unique combination of ingredients known for their beneficial role in maintaining healthy brain function and performance, including Fish oils, Phosphatidylserine (PS), Ginkgo biloba, Vitamin B12 and folic acid. Available from Boots, Holland & Barrett, independent pharmacies and health food stores and online from www.efamol.com, Efalex Active 50+ is priced from £9.49 for 30 capsules.
References
1.Chiu C, Su K, Cheng T, Liu H, Chang C, Dewey M, Stewart R, Huang S. The effects of omega-3 fatty
acids monotherapy in Alzheimer’s disease and mild cognitive impairment: A preliminary randomized
double-blind, placebo-controlled study. Progress in Neuro-sychopharmacology & Biological Psychiatry
2008;32:1538-1544.

2.Fontani G, Corradeschi F, Felici A, Alfatti F, Migliorini S et al. Cognitive and physiological effects
of Omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid supplementation in healthy subjects. Eur J Clin Invest
2005;35(11):691-9.

3.Kotani S, Sakaguchi E, Warashina S, Matsukawa N, Ishikura Y, Kiso Y, Sakakibara M, Yoshimoto T,
Guo J, Yamashima T.  Dietary supplementation of arachidonic and docosahexaenoic acids improves
cognitive dysfunction. Neuroscience Research 2006;56:159-164.

4.Van de Rest O, Geleijnse JM, Dullemeijer C, OldeRikkert MGM, Beekman ATF, DeGroot CPGM. Effect of fish oil on cognitive performance in older subjects. Neurology 2008;71:430-438.