Scientists are calling for doctors to routinely use a blood-test to check omega-3 levels to help fight diabetes and heart disease. They want the tests to sit alongside cholesterol tests that doctors regularly order.

Professor Bernhard Breier and a team of scientists at Massey University’s Albany campus have been working on research that is the first to show the benefits of omega-3 in protecting against diabetes and heart disease in people who are prone to obesity.

Bernhard, chairman of human nutrition at the Institute of Food, Nutrition and Human Health, said a test for omega-3 levels could be performed as simply as a cholesterol test, and the benefits were just as pronounced.

Their studies had shown Omega-3 made insulin more effective and therefore improved carbohydrate and fat metabolism. That means people taking the right amount of Omega-3 for their body could be less prone to developing type 2 diabetes, heart disease, or both. A blood test could work out how much more omega-3 a person might need.

“omega-3 fatty acids are one of the important parts of the puzzle in our fight against type 2 diabetes.”

Bernhard said the health benefits were well known, but the group wanted to find out how omega-3 worked, and whether there were differences in how it worked when there was a genetic predisposition for obesity.

“We know some people can put on the pounds more easily than others. We investigated how omega-3 worked in different lifestyle conditions,” he said.

The group found omega-3 was not as effective in those genetically predisposed to obesity but that it could still have benefits.

“It is not one size fits all for the amount of omega-3 that people need to eat or take. We want to establish how it gives the best dietary protection against disease, and that might vary in age groups or by gender.”

Breier said foods rich in omega-3 included oily fish like salmon, tuna, sardines, or plant sources like flax seed, canola, soy bean oil and walnuts.

He said most people could get the right amount of omega-3 from a healthy diet. “It is a bit of a guessing game. Do I like salmon? And if I like it, I eat it a lot, and if I don’t, well it’s a bit difficult. And how much do I need anyway? Is it enough if I take one fish oil tablet a day, or should I take four?”

A test would solve that issue, he said. “We have the ability to change the different body-building blocks by eating omega-3 rich foods.”

by: SARAH HARVEY
originally printed : - Sunday Star Times