TWO SERVINGS OF FISH A WEEK MAY HELP PROTECT AGAINST DEMENTIA（附中文）

Older men and women who ate at least two servings of fish a week were at lower risk of developing brain changes tied to dementia. The findings add to growing evidence that fish, long heralded for heart health, is also good for brain health.

Eating fish appeared to improve vascular health, or the health of tiny blood vessels, in the brain. Poor vascular health in the brain is a common cause of dementia and can worsen symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease. There are few effective treatments of Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia, so any lifestyle interventions that may help are important.

“Our results are exciting because they show something as simple as eating two or more servings of fish each week is associated with fewer brain lesions and other markers of vascular brain damage, long before obvious signs of dementia appear,” said study author Cecilia Samieri, of the University of Bordeaux in France. The study was published in Neurology.

For the study, the researchers looked at 1,623 people 65 and older living in France. None had memory problems or Alzheimer’s disease or other forms of dementia at the start of the study, and none had had a stroke or other cardiovascular problems that can impair the brain.

The study participants underwent MRI brain scans to assess their blood vessel health. The researchers looked at three brain abnormalities: white matter hyperintensities, abnormal lesions that show up as bright spots; micro-infarcts, or small regions of dead tissue; and enlarged perivascular spaces, or fluid-filled cavities in brain tissue surrounding blood vessels. These three brain changes are signs of impaired blood flow and put people at higher risk for cognitive decline and dementia as well as stroke, though people may have them without developing memory problems or disease.

Study volunteers also filled out detailed questionnaires about their diets, including how often they ate fish and seafood in a typical week. Eleven percent of the group ate fish less than once a week; 37 percent ate fish about once a week, 47 percent ate it two or three times per week; and 6 percent ate fish four or more times per week.

The researchers found that among people who ate no fish, 31 percent had high levels of the vascular brain abnormalities, compared to 23 percent of those who ate two or three servings a week, and 18 percent of those who ate four or more servings of fish per week.

The study showed only an association and does not prove that eating fish prevents dementia, only that it may lower your risk of developing the disease. In terms of dementia risk, the benefits of eating fish two or three times a week were equivalent to maintaining a healthy blood pressure, which has also been shown to lower the risk of dementia.

“Diet is a factor people can modify to possibly decrease their risk of cognitive decline and even dementia later in life,” Dr. Samieri said.

People with Alzheimer’s disease often have problems with blood vessels in the brain that may be making symptoms worse. The findings may help to explain why measures that can improve blood vessel health in midlife — like eating a heart-healthy diet, getting regular exercise and keeping cholesterol levels in check —may help to curb Alzheimer’s in old age. People who have signs of both Alzheimer’s and blood vessel disease are sometimes referred to as having “mixed” dementia (“mixed” for both Alzheimer dementia and vascular dementia).

Earlier studies have likewise found an association between eating fish and a lower risk of Alzheimer’s disease. In many of these studies, baked or broiled fish, but not fried fish, provided the greatest brain benefits. Oily fish rich in omega-3 fatty acids, like salmon and sardines, may be particularly protective.

In addition to a possible protective effect, dietary consumption of fish might also reduce the intake of less healthy food by acting as a substitution. In other words, a serving of fish might substitute for a cut of red meat high in saturated fat.

Regardless of your age, it’s never too early or too late to strive for a lifetime of robust brain health. Eating a heart-healthy diet that includes fish is a good start.

新研究告訴你：每週吃多少魚有助大腦敏銳？-記者夏雨編譯

老年人每週吃幾次魚，對他們的大腦保持敏銳有幫助。一項新的研究表明，攝入適量的魚，有助於避免最終可能導致癡呆癥的血管疾病。
研究主要作者艾琳‧托馬（Aline Thomas）說：「之前的研究，包括我們法國團隊和美國其他團隊的工作，都報告了吃魚對晚年認知能力下降和癡呆風險的保護作用。」

托馬的新調查發現，在65歲或以上的健康成年人中，「每週吃兩份或更多的魚可以保護大腦免受血管病變的影響，進一步以免出現明顯癡呆癥跡象。」

然而保護作用僅在75歲以下的老年人中可見。

托馬是法國波爾多大學（Bordeaux University）波爾多人口健康研究中心的博士生。

這項研究發表在11月3日的《神經病學》（Neurology）雜誌上，托馬和同事報告了對1,600多名65歲以上（平均年齡72歲）的男性和女性進行的腦部掃描結果。參與者都沒有癡呆、中風或心臟病既往史。

掃描檢查了血管疾病的三個明顯跡象。掃描顯示，2%的患者存在小腦損傷，8%的患者存在腦腔（brain cavity），6%的患者存在腦組織中有液體積聚。

儘管這三個跡象都可以在癡呆癥明顯跡象出現之前很久就出現，但所有這些癥狀都與長期增加的癡呆癥風險和精神敏銳度整體下降有關。

與此同時，參與者被問及他們的飲食，以及他們每週食用多少魚——包括鮭魚、金槍魚和/或沙丁魚。參與者平均每週食用兩次魚。

然後，研究小組將腦損傷、腦腔和腦組織液體積聚的發展，與每個參與者的魚類消費習慣相結合。

研究結果顯示，影響大腦血液流動的血管疾病，在每週吃四次魚的人中只有18%；在每週吃魚三次的75歲以下老年人中則有23%。

相比之下，近三分之一的不吃魚的參與者已經出現血管疾病的關鍵癥狀。

研究作者強調，他們的發現只是強調一種關聯，並不能真正證明吃魚可以預防癡呆癥發作。

這項研究發現對德州大學西南醫學中心（UT Southwestern Medical Center）健康專業學院臨床營養項目主任洛娜‧桑德（Lona Sandon）來說是有意義的。

桑德說，這「並不意外」。

「大腦需要鮭魚和沙丁魚中的omega-3脂肪才能發育並終生保持健康。」桑德解釋說。她還指出腦組織是由這些健康脂肪組成的。「Omega-3脂肪酸對大腦健康和促進大腦血管暢通與對心臟健康同樣重要。」

桑德補充說，吃魚不僅僅讓老年人獲得顯著健康益處，「為了大腦正常生長和發育，從嬰兒期就開始需要健康的脂肪」。

她建議普羅大眾：「無需等待。現在就開始吃魚和其它富含omega-3脂肪酸的食物，如核桃和亞麻籽等。為了以穩健心態促進健康和長壽，儘早開始並經常吃富含脂肪的魚。」（大紀元）

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