Research Summary Archives

More frequent consumption of fish, especially fatty fish, and higher blood levels of long-chain omega-3 PUFAs (n-3 LC-PUFAs) have been associated with a lower risk of developing dementia and cognitive decline in several prospective cohort studies of older adults. As is often the case, not all studie...

The importance of long-chain PUFAs (LC-PUFAs) in fetal and infant development derives from the involvement of these fatty acids in brain structure and function and cell signaling in the brain, retina and neural cells. During development, the fetus depends on the maternal supply of these fatty acids ...

Positive links between DHA, long-chain omega-3 PUFA (n-3 LC-PUFA) status or intake and LC-PUFA supplementation and cognitive function have been reported in infants, children, adults and the elderly, but the literature is inconsistent and effects have usually been small. Several, but not all, studies...

Depressive illness, especially in its recurrent form—major depressive disorder—is a disabling illness that the World Health Organization expects will be the world’s second leading cause of disability by the year 2020. In high-income countries, the lifetime prevalence of this condition is estimate...

Excessive anxiety during pregnancy increases the chances of lower birthweight and shorter gestation and may adversely affect the infant’s neurodevelopment. Cognitive behavioral therapy, prescription medications, yoga, complementary therapies and exercise may be beneficial in reducing maternal anxiet...

Animal and human studies have demonstrated that, in the metabolic syndrome or elderly patients with an acute illness, those who undergo surgery often experience a surgery-induced sharp decline in cognition. Similar impairments have been observed in patients with severe infection, chemotherapy, traum...

Perinatal depressive illness has implications for pregnancy outcomes, the development of a healthy mother-child relationship, infant and child development and the mother’s ability to cope with the stress of caring for a newborn. Prevalence estimates suggest that major and minor episodes of depressiv...

Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) entails a complex set of disturbances and behaviors that impairs a person’s ability to function and increases the chances that the symptoms will persist to adulthood and predispose to poor occupational functioning. ADHD has been described by the Americ...

Several observational studies have reported that infants and children of mothers who had higher intakes of fish or n-3 LC-PUFAs in pregnancy score higher on cognitive and behavioral tests than children of mothers with low intakes. In the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children, the children ...

Higher concentrations of DHA in brain have been associated with improved memory performance in individuals with mild cognitive impairment, age-related cognitive decline, preterm infants fed LC-PUFA-supplemented formula, school-aged children with higher umbilical cord DHA concentrations and better co...

Many characteristics of Alzheimer’s disease are agreed, but the origins, cause, physiological processes and progression of this debilitating condition are not. For example, it has been suggested that mild cognitive impairment (MCI) is a transitional phase between normal cognitive changes in aging an...

The importance of DHA in the recovery from spinal cord or traumatic brain injuries has been demonstrated in DHA-treated animals that exhibit dramatic improvements in motor function, greatly reduced neuronal loss, improved learning, less oxidative stress, and more rapid recovery. This work suggests t...