A new study suggests
healthy young adults ages 18-25 can improve their working memory by increasing
their omega-3 fatty acid intake.
Researchers say the
investigation is one of the first to look at omega-3′s relationship to
memory among healthy young adults. Omega-3 essential fatty acids are found in
foods like wild fish and grass-fed livestock and are necessary for human body
functioning.
University of
Pittsburgh researchers have published their findings in the online journal PLOS
One. Although the research clearly observed positive advances in memory,
the biological mechanism by which this occurred was not discerned. “Before
seeing this data, I would have said it was impossible to move young healthy
individuals above their cognitive best,” said Bita Moghaddam, project
investigator and professor of neuroscience.
“We found that
members of this population can enhance their working memory performance even
further, despite their already being at the top of their cognitive game.”
For the study the
Pitt research team sought healthy young men and women from all ethnicities to
boost their omega-3 intake with supplements for six months. Participants were
monitored monthly through phone calls and outpatient procedures. Before they
began taking the supplements, all subjects underwent positron emission
tomography (PET) imaging, and their blood samples were analyzed. They were then
asked to perform a working memory test in which they were shown a series of
letters and numbers.
The young adults had
to keep track of what appeared one, two, and three times prior, known as a
simple “n-back test.” “What was particularly interesting about the
presupplementation n-back test was that it correlated positively with plasma
omega-3,” said Moghaddam. “This means that the omega-3s they were getting from
their diet already positively correlated with their working memory.”
After six months of
taking Lovaza—an omega-3 supplement approved by the Federal Drug
Administration—the participants were asked to complete this series of
outpatient procedures again. It was during this last stage, during the working
memory test and blood sampling, that the improved working memory of this
population was revealed. “So many of the previous studies have been done with
the elderly or people with medical conditions, leaving this unique population
of young adults unaddressed,” said Matthew Muldoon, project co-investigator and
associate professor of medicine at Pitt. “But what about our
highest-functioning periods? Can we help the brain achieve its full potential
by adapting our healthy behaviors in our young adult life? We found that we
absolutely can.”
Although the effects
of omega-3s on young people were a focus, the Pitt team was also hoping to
determine the brain mechanism associated with omega-3 regulation. Previous
rodent studies suggested that removing omega-3 from the diet might reduce
dopamine storage (the neurotransmitter associated with mood as well as working
memory) and decrease density in the striatal vesicular monoamine transporter
type 2 (commonly referred to as VMAT2, a protein associated with decision-making).
Therefore, the Pitt researchers posited that increasing VMAT2 protein was the
mechanism of action that boosted cognitive performance.
Unfortunately, PET
imaging revealed this was not the case. “It is really interesting that diets
enriched with omega-3 fatty acid can enhance cognition in highly functional
young individuals,” said Rajesh Narendarn, project principal investigator and
associate professor of radiology. “Nevertheless, it was a bit disappointing
that our imaging studies were unable to clarify the mechanisms by which it
enhances working memory.”
Laboratory studies
using animal subjects indicate that brain mechanisms that are affected by
omega-3s may be differently influenced in adolescents and young adults than
they are in older adults. With this in mind, the Pitt team will continue to
evaluate the effect of omega-3 fatty acids in this younger population to find
the mechanism that improves cognition.
Psych Central
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