05/08/2024
This is how study results have fooled even .
Video: "He took Omega-3 Supplements For 90 days! Why Dr. Greger Thinks Everyone Should Take Vegan Omega-3!"
https://youtu.be/LDjSsNdV9Vc?si=uqrtdU_WMfbLKvu-
The study cited in the video:
2013 Study: "DHA supplementation improved both memory and reaction time in healthy young adults: a randomized controlled trial"
Link: https://doi.org/10.3945/ajcn.112.053371
"...low habitual intake of LC n-3 PUFAs (less than ∼200 mg EPA + DHA/wk)..."
But made no mention of the participants' intake of ALA. If the participants had insufficient intake of ALA, then of course adding LCPUFAs (DHA) would help, but so would sufficient intake of ALA.
It is known that DHA increases BDNF in the brain, which is thought to be responsible for much of the immediate brain health benefits, including cognitive functions (2020 study below).
It is also known that ALA enters the brain directly and increases BDNF (2015 study below).
If people are not consuming sufficient Omega 3 ALA to increase BDNF, then intake of additional DHA would be a replacement for insufficient ALA to increase the BDNF-induced benefits shown in the study.
2020 Study: Plasma BDNF is a more reliable biomarker than erythrocyte omega-3 index for the omega-3 fatty acid enrichment of brain
Link: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-020-67868-9
"The commonly used erythrocyte omega-3 index is not suitable for brain because of the involvement of unique transporter at the blood brain barrier (BBB).(LPC)-DHA significantly increases brain DHA, which results in an increase of brain BDNF"
2015 Study: Alpha-Linolenic Acid: An Omega-3 Fatty Acid with Neuroprotective Properties—Ready for Use in the Stroke Clinic?
Link: https://doi.org/10.1155/2015/519830
"ALA was shown to increase levels of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), a widely distributed protein that [59] in the brain carries out diverse functions, including neuronal maintenance, learning and memory, neuronal survival, and neurogenesis."
Finally, the first three Omega 3 forms (ALA. SDA, ETA), which you cannot get from preformed EPA/DHA, were found to have greater benefits for the brain, including fluid intelligence and brain preservation:
2018 Study: Determinants of fluid intelligence in healthy aging: Omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid status and frontoparietal cortex structure
Link: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28492102/
"Results: The mediation analysis revealed that one pattern of omega-3 PUFAs, consisting of alpha-linolenic acid (ALA), stearidonic acid (SDA), and eicosatrienoic acid (ETA), was linked to fluid intelligence, and that total gray matter volume..."
Note:
All of the studies listed above came out AFTER the 2013 study cited in the video!
Dr. Greger should know this. If he hasn't read these - why not? If he has read these studies, then why use this older study as a reason to tell people to take preformed DHA, when more recent studies show otherwise?
DHA,
What happened when a Dr Allen took Omega 3 supplements for 90 days? In this video we'll learn why Dr Greger thinks everyone, not just vegans, should be takin...
