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Losing weight with Omega-3?
The article is about whether regular consumption of fish or omega-3 fatty acids affects genetic body weight. Here we summarize the results of a recent U.S. study on this topic, published in "The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition" in 2019.
Study Design
Genetic predisposition to obesity was defined using a genetic risk scoring system. This involved examining in each individual which hereditary segments could influence the body weight to height ratio. Based on this examination, an individual risk score for genetic obesity was determined for each individual. Thus, a high risk value meant that the genetic predisposition to obesity was particularly pronounced.
In addition, participants were divided into 4 groups based on the frequency of their consumption of fish or omega-3. Group 1 included participants who consumed fish or omega-3 fatty acids less than once a week. Group 4, on the other hand, consisted of participants for whom fish or omega-3 fatty acids were a daily part of their diet.
The effect of omega-3 fatty acids on body weight
In the results of all 3 separate studies (NHS, HPFS and WHI), it was observed that a high intake of both fish and omega-3 fatty acids reduced the genetically determined increase in body weight. This was particularly evident in subjects' body mass index (BMI), which represents body weight in relation to height. A sufficiently high consumption of both omega-3 and fish had a long-term positive effect on the development of BMI.
The group with the highest intake of fish and long-chain omega-3 fatty acids showed the weakest genetic influence. In other words, in this group, genetic predisposition to obesity had the least negative effect on the long-term development of BMI.
What are omega-3 fatty acids?
Who does not know it from their own circle of acquaintances: from the age of 40, the pointer on the scale usually points slowly but steadily upward. One to two kilograms more per year is not uncommon. Affected people are often distraught. They cannot explain why their weight increases from year to year while their eating habits remain mostly unchanged, and they wonder how to counteract this development.
Factors affecting body weight
Scientific studies show that regular weight gain in old age is strongly determined not only by lifestyle but also by hereditary factors. However, there is growing evidence that a high intake of omega-3 fatty acids can reduce genetically determined weight gain.
A recent study has therefore now examined the relationship between a person's individual genetic predisposition and the development of their body weight. It examined whether high fish consumption and/or a high intake of marine omega-3 fatty acids could attenuate the genetically determined increase in body weight over a lifetime.
The interaction between genes and habitual fish consumption was followed and assessed a total of 24,000 subjects in the Nurses' Health Study (NHS), the Health Professionals Follow-Up Study (HPFS) and the Women's Health Initiative (WHI) over a period of more than 6 years.
So will omega-3 really make you slim?
In the study described above, the researchers concluded that high consumption of fish or omega-3 counteracts steady weight gain over the course of a lifetime. In detail, omega-3 was shown to attenuate the effect of genes that cause this development.
Omega-3 fatty acids certainly cannot lead to strong weight loss alone. Exercise and a healthy lifestyle remain the most important pillars in the therapeutic treatment of obesity. However, Omega-3 fatty acids can be an important therapeutic building block.
