Omega 3 fatty acids, commonly found in fish and fish oil supplements, play a vital role in maintaining lung health, reveals a study supported by the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
The study, funded primarily by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI), represents the most robust evidence to date of this association and emphasizes the importance of including omega-3 fatty acids in the diet, especially considering that many Americans fail to meet current dietary guidelines. The study’s results were published in the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine.
THE STUDY
Led by Patricia A. Cassano, Ph.D., the director of the Division of Nutritional Sciences at Cornell University, the study aimed to explore the connection between omega-3 fatty acid levels in the blood and lung function over time. In the first part of the research, a longitudinal, observational study involved 15,063 healthy American adults from the NHLBI Pooled Cohorts Study—a compilation of NIH-funded studies focused on identifying personalized risk factors for chronic lung disease. The participants, with an average age of 56 years and a diverse racial representation, showed no evidence of chronic lung disease at the study’s commencement. The researchers followed the participants for an average of seven years, and some were tracked for up to 20 years.
The longitudinal study demonstrated that individuals with higher levels of omega-3 fatty acids in their blood experienced a slower rate of lung function decline over time. The most substantial associations were observed with docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), a type of omega-3 fatty acid found in fatty fish like salmon, tuna, and sardines, as well as available as a dietary supplement.
The second part of the study involved the analysis of genetic data from over 500,000 European patients from the UK Biobank. The researchers investigated specific genetic markers as an indirect measure of dietary omega-3 fatty acid levels and correlated them with lung health. The results demonstrated a positive association between higher omega-3 fatty acid levels, including DHA, and improved lung function.
CONSIDERATIONS AND FUTURE DIRECTIONS
A significant limitation of the current study is that it only included healthy adults. To address this, researchers are collaborating with the COPDGene study to explore blood levels of omega-3 fatty acids in relation to the rate of lung function decline in individuals with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), including heavy smokers. These findings could potentially lead to individualized dietary recommendations for individuals at high risk of chronic lung disease.
The study’s findings underscore the potential benefits of omega-3 fatty acids in maintaining lung health, particularly due to their anti-inflammatory properties. While more research is required to fully understand the relationship between omega-3 fatty acids and lung function, the study highlights the importance of incorporating fish, fish oil supplements, nuts, seeds, plant oils, and fortified foods rich in omega-3 fatty acids into the diet. As the field of nutritional research advances towards precision nutrition, these findings may lead to more personalized dietary recommendations for preventing and managing chronic lung diseases in the future.
