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Research Highlights
DHA Fights Alzheimer’s Brain Plaques in Mice
March 23, 2005
Researchers with VA and the University of California, Los Angeles, found that a diet high in
docosahexenoic acid, or DHA—one of the omega-3 fatty acids in cold-water fish—dramatically
slowed the progression of Alzheimer’s disease in mice. Specifically, DHA cut the harmful brain
plaques that mark the disease. DHA—found in fish and some other food sources, and available in fishoil-
or algae-based nutritional supplements—is already touted by many health experts for its role in
cardiovascular health and other body functions. A study by the same researchers last year showed that
DHA protected against damage to the “synaptic” areas where brain cells communicate and enabled
mice to perform better on memory tests. (Journal of Neuroscience, 3/23/05).
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