High daily dose of omega-3 additive rescues from such negative consequences of stress as accelerated aging of the body, reducing damage and reinforcing the protection at the cellular level. Academic University of Ohio (USA) came to this conclusion, who published an article in Molecular Psychiatry magazine.
The study was attended by 138 middle-aged people, leading a sedentary lifestyle and suffering from excess weight. They were divided into three groups, in two of which the tests for four months each daily received either 2.5 grams, or 1.25 grams of polyunsaturated fatty acids omega-3, and in the third placebo. Before and after the course of receiving food additives, the participants fulfilled the Treier’s social stress test (TSST), which lies in the fact that each test passes the interview consisting of two stages: five-minute self-preventation in front of the jury and oral arithmetic task. TSST reliably increases a person’s level of stress biomarkers.
Before and after the stress test, the tests took blood samples and saliva to measure cortisol, telomerase enzymes in peripheral blood lymphocytes, as well as cytokines: anti-inflammatory interleukin-10 (IL-10) and pro-inflammatory interleukin-6 (IL-6 ), Interleukina-12, Alpha tumor necrosis factor.
Omega-3 fatty acids improved the post-stress activity of telomerase and IL-10, which in the placebo group decreased by 24 and 26 percent, respectively. Bioduds in the amount of 2.5 grams (the highest dose in the study) per day also reduced the overall level of cortisol and IL-6 by 19 and 33 percent compared to the placebo group. Thus, specialists conclude, Omega-3 saves the body from aging, accelerated with stress factors, and also reduce the risk of depression.
It is believed that inflammatory reactions reduce the length of the telomere in cells. Since telomeres protect DNA from damage to cell divide, but at the same time they are shortened each time, inflammation factors can speed up the moment when the cell can no longer multiply. Telomerase is able to restore telomers, slowing the process of cell aging. It is also known that reinforced inflammatory response to stress is associated with a high risk of depression.