Its role in reducing heart attacks is already well known, but a series of other key studies have shown that it can not only dramatically reduces the risk of young people developing psychosis or schizophrenia, but it is also playing an important role in combating bowel and other . It can even act as an anti ageing aid.
The mental illness discovery is brand new. Australian psychiatrist Paul Amminger from the University of Melbourne said the results of his research him. He now believes doctors should now consider fish oil as a genuine alternative to expensive and more risky anti-psychotic drugs when a young patient is showing early signs of mental illness. And he believes the oil's omega-3 fatty acids might help prevent depression and drug abuse.
In the study, published in the Archives of General Psychiatry journal, 41 high-risk patients were given four fish oil capsules a day for three months. Only two of them developed a psychotic disorder, compared with 11 of another 40 who took a placebo
Meanwhile, the bowel cancer benefits were disclosed by Dr Sangmi Kim of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences in North Carolina, who presented his findings to a cancer conference in Houston Texas. He said: "An increase in dietary intake of omega-3 fatty acids may be beneficial in the prevention of bowel cancer."
Now a team in California has found that oily fish like salmon, herring and sardines can protect the cells that keep people from skin damage and delay ageing.
The paper, published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, suggests that compounds in these fatty acids may protect against ageing and the damage caused by heart disease.There are also other recent claims that fish oil can help with dental disease problems and further studies which strengthen the view that it really does help heart attack patients.
From fishupdate.com