WHILE the number of people diagnosed with dementia is expected to nearly triple by the year 2050, doctors continue to advise strategies to modify your risk.

A recent study identifies a specific vitamin with impressive abilities to prevent mental degeneration. And to make matters worse, a specialist claims that many adults are deficient.

Diet provides most vitamins and minerals. Plant-based foods are a fantastic option for improving your health, from colorful fruit and vegetables to leafy greens. But there is one “essential nutrient” that can only be found in oily fish: omega 3. In addition, this nutrient may help lower your risk of developing the illness that steals your memory.

Omega 3 fatty acids are crucial for brain function (as well as heart function and eye function), according to nutritionist and researcher Dr. Pam Mason of the Health & Food Supplements Information Service (HSIS). They have a lifelong impact on how well our brains work.

For older women, preventing cognitive deterioration is a top priority, and omega-3 fatty acids are crucial nutrition.

Reduced omega 3 status is associated with poorer levels of cognitive function in younger women, which may make them more susceptible to cognitive decline as they age since it creates a lower baseline from which brain health can deteriorate.

Sadly, many women do not get enough of this brain-boosting mineral.

The HSIS’s most recent report, Diet Disasters for the Seven Ages of Women: How nutritional gaps are putting women’s health at risk throughout their lives, found that women of all ages don’t get enough omega-3 fatty acids.

These results are consistent with those from the US National Dietary Survey, which indicated that women consume fewer omega-3 fatty acids than men.

The doctor hypothesized that the difference could be due to the fact that women consume fewer servings of oily fish.

Harvard Medical School reports that the fatty acids are primarily sourced from food, specifically this type of fish combined with vegetable oils, almonds, and flax seeds.

The CDC advises consuming one serving of oily fish per week. The health service does say, though, that most people don’t eat this much.

What are some omega-3-rich foods?

If you didn’t know, oily fish includes things like:

Pilchards, Salmon, Sardines, Sprats, Trout Mackerel, and Herring (kipper, bloater, and hilsa).

If eating fish isn’t really your thing, the doctor may also recommend alternative foods that are high in omega-3 fatty acids.

Lean red meat, shellfish, eggs, and foods fortified with omega-3 fatty acids were among her recommendations.

“For people wanting a vegan or vegetarian source of omega 3 fatty acids,” according to her, “seeds like linseed, hemp seeds or chia seeds or nuts like walnuts contain alpha-linolenic acid (ALA).”

But the expert warned that the body needs to change this type of omega-3, called ALA, into EPA and DHA, which are found in oily fish.

Since this is typically an “inefficient” process, she also recommended taking omega-3 fatty acid supplements alongside your plant-based diet.

What do the studies reveal?

Higher blood levels of omega-3 fatty acids may be linked to a lower risk of dementia and Alzheimer’s disease, according to a study that was published in the European Journal of Clinical Nutrition.

Furthermore, a study published in the journal Neurology found a correlation between lower DHA levels and reduced brain size, which is “a sign of accelerated brain ageing”.

Dr. Mason continued, “An analysis of five large studies that followed a total of 23,688 older participants (88 percent women) for 3.9 to 9.1 years found slower rates of decline in memory and cognition with increasing fish intakes.”

Nevertheless, according to the Alzheimer’s Society, there isn’t very strong evidence that omega-3 itself is behind this benefit”.

The organization notes that while “the jury’s still out on omega 3,” it is likely that including fish in a healthy diet can reduce the incidence of cognitive impairment.

Image Credit: Getty

You were reading: Dementia: This One Key Nutrient Is Especially Potent At Staving Off Cognitive Decline, Says Expert