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Omega-3 Use Shows Diabetes Benefits

Posted: Monday, November 07, 2011

A new study has found that omega-3 fatty acids, better known as fish oil, may help to protect against chronic inflammation and insulin resistance.

The published research, by scientists at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine, revealed that eating fish could be a means of treating problems such as inflammation in obesity and in conditions like diabetes, cardiovascular disease and cancer through taking dietary supplements.

The research team was able to identify a key receptor on macrophages that are found in great numbers in obese body fat. With obesity and diabetes being so closely correlated, the researchers believe that omega-3 fatty acids activate this macrophage receptor, which results in anti-inflammatory effects and improves insulin sensitivity.

Team member Jerrold Olefsky stated that, "Obese fat tissue can contain a large amount of these macrophages producing lots of cytokines, which can cause inflammation and rising insulin resistance." "The omega-3 fatty acids switch on the receptor, killing the inflammatory response."

We still don't know how much fish oil constitutes a safe and effective dose, so diabetics have to be careful, especially as to how high a dose could increase the risk of bleeding and strokes in some people.

Obesity is not just a U.S. issue although Americans are still the fattest, a Gallup poll indicates.

The Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index, which tracks obesity in America, Britain and Germany monthly, found Americans are in far worse shape than are Britons and Germans. Twenty-five percent of Americans are obese, compared with 20 percent of Britons and slightly more than 10 percent of Germans, the index indicated.

Worldwide obesity has more than doubled since 1980 and being overweight or obese is the fifth-leading risk for global deaths, killing about 2.8 million adults each year with the obese more likely to suffer from chronic conditions, the World Health Organization said.

Source: http://www.diabetesincontrol.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=11705&catid=53&Itemid=8, journal Cell, Nov 2011.