University of Naples and University of Eastern Finland, 13-May-2016
Increased serum levels of the long chain omega-3s EPA, DPA, and DHA are associated with better performance on neuropsychological tests in older men and women, says a new study.
Data from the Kuopio Ischaemic Heart Disease Risk Factor Study indicated that higher serum omega-3 levels were associated with significantly better performance on the Trail Making Test and the Verbal Fluency Test, which assess specific cognitive domains such as the ability to shift from alternating concepts or to produce words in a limited letter category.
On the other hand, no benefits were observed in the Selective Reminding Test, the Visual Reproduction Test and the Mini Mental State Exam, wrote the researchers in the European Journal of Clinical Nutrition .
The researchers also noted that there were no links between exposure to mercury (the omega-3 in the diet of this study population came mainly from fish) and cognitive performance.