鱼体内的Omega-3型脂肪酸能够增加大脑灰质

根据一项最新研究发现，在富含脂肪的鱼诸如大麻哈鱼体内发现的Omega-3型脂肪酸，与大脑灰质容量的增加有关，该区域与人的情绪和行为有联系。

该项研究的结果在2007年3月6日匈牙利布达佩斯举行的美国心理学会年度会议上进行了报道，由美国匹兹堡大学(Pitt; PA, USA; www.pitt.edu)心理学系的心血管行为医学项目的博士后Sarah M. Conklin博士报道的。

尽管这些结果提示，omega-3s能够促进大脑情绪和情感调节相关区域的结构改善，在严重抑郁疾病的时候，这些区域的灰质减少；但是研究人员指出需要更多的研究，以确定吃鱼是否真的能够导致大脑的改变。

Omega-3 Found to Increase Brain’s Gray Matter  
 
Omega-3 fatty acids, found in fatty fish such as salmon, are associated with increased gray matter volume in areas of the brain typically linked to mood and behavior according to new research.

The study’s results were presented March 6, 2007, by Sarah M. Conklin, Ph.D., postdoctoral scholar at the Cardiovascular Behavioral Medicine Program in the department of psychiatry at the University of Pittsburgh (Pitt; PA, USA; www.pitt.edu), at the American Psychosomatic Society’s annual meeting, held in Budapest, Hungary.

While this finding suggests that omega-3s may promote structural improvement in areas of the brain related to mood and emotion regulation--the same areas where gray matter is decreased in individuals who have mood disorders such as major depressive disorder--investigators noted that more research is needed to determine whether fish consumption actually causes changes in the brain.