Washington, Sep 1 (Inditop.com) A team of French scientists has identified just the right dose of DHA acid that prevents heart disease in healthy men.
This study is the first to identify how much DHA or docosahexaenoic acid (omega-3 fatty acid) is necessary to promote optimal heart health.
Scientists show that a 200 mg daily dose of DHA is enough to affect biochemical markers that reliably predict cardiovascular problems, such as those related to aging, atherosclerosis, and diabetes.
“This study shows that regularly consuming small amounts of DHA is likely to improve the health status of people, especially in regards to cardiovascular function,” said Michel Lagarde, co-author of the study.
Lagarde and colleagues examined the effects of increasing doses of DHA on 12 healthy male volunteers aged between 53 and 65.
These men consumed doses of DHA at 200, 400, 800, and 1600 mg per day for two weeks for each dose amount, with DHA being the only omega-3 fatty acid in their diet.
Blood and urine samples were collected before and after each dose and at eight weeks after DHA supplementation stopped.
Researchers then examined these samples for biochemical markers indicating the effects of each dose on the volunteers.
“Now that we have a very good idea about how much DHA is just right, the next step is to try it out in an expanded clinical trial that involves many more people,” said Gerald Weissmann, editor-in-chief of The FASEB Journal, which is slated to publish the report.
“Until then, I’ll stick with tasty foods that contain DHA, like fish, rather than getting a quick fatty-acid fix at the local vitamin store,” Weissmann said.
FASEB is the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology.
