Fish Oil Fails to Slow Alzheimer’s Decline But Improved Cognitive Impairment

Supplements of docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), the omega-3 fatty acid found in fish oil, failed to slow the progression of Alzheimer’s disease in a 402-patient clinical trial, researchers reported.

“The primary implication of this study is that we are not going to be able to make a recommendation for DHA in the aggregate for people with Alzheimer’s disease,” said Joseph Quinn, MD, a neurologist at the Oregon Health & Sciences University, Portland, told colleagues here at the International Conference on Alzheimer’s Disease.

However, Dr. Quinn said a subgroup of patients who have the apolipoproteinE4 gene did apparently benefit from DHA supplements, but the researchers are interpreting the finding cautiously, as a guide to future studies.

In a second study presented at the meeting, DHA did appear to help task functioning in a group of healthier individuals who had cognitive impairment but weren’t at a stage of Alzheimer’s diagnosis.

Reprinted Summary with permission. Read full article at: http://www.medpagetoday.com/MeetingCoverage/ICAD/15054