A recent study showed that using a cocktail style combination of multiple common nutrients, including DHA, may delay the progression of mild Alzheimer's disease in patients. At the Alzheimer's/Parkinson's Disease Conference 2024 held in Lisbon, Portugal from March 5th to 9th, 2024, Tobias Hartmann, the leader of this study, director of experimental neurology at the Saarland University School of Medicine in Homburg, Germany, and director of the German Institute for Dementia Prevention, reported this discovery. The relevant research results have been published in The Journal of Prevention of Alzheimer's Disease in March 2024.
In this three-year study, researchers randomly provided a mixed nutritional supplement consisting of fish oil (DHA, EPA), vitamins C, E, B12, B6, choline, uridine (monophosphate uridine), folate, and selenium to 153 mild Alzheimer's disease patients, and provided a placebo to an additional 158 patients to compare their cognitive abilities and changes in brain structure.
Ultimately, a total of 81 patients (45 in the experimental group and 36 in the control group) completed the trial and underwent examination. Researchers found that compared to the control group taking a placebo, the cognitive decline in the experimental group was alleviated. Their clinical dementia score sum scale (CDR-SB) decreased by 45%, and the rate of atrophy of the hippocampus, which is closely related to cognitive impairment, also decreased by 33%.
Our calculations show that in terms of delaying the progression of the disease, if the intervention time is more than 3 years, the patient's condition can be delayed by 6 months for every year of treatment they receive. The specific values may vary slightly depending on individual differences among patients, "Director Hartmann said in an interview with The Paper Science and Technology.
At the same time, he also mentioned that in this study, these nutrients only had a certain effect on early-stage Alzheimer's disease patients. The participants have not yet reached a severe level of dementia and are able to live independently at home. We also have a study targeting severe patients. Various nutritional supplementation interventions for them may not be as effective
It is reported that the study is part of the LipiDiDietet research project, a collaboration between institutions from multiple European countries. LipiDiDietet was founded in 2007, funded by the European Union and multiple companies, with the aim of studying the effects of nutritional lipids on aging, Alzheimer's disease, and vascular dementia. The project utilized a patented nutrient formula called Fortasym Connect for research (marketed as Souveniid Smart Agile). Since 2017, the interim results of this research project have been published in journals such as The Lancet Neurology and Alzheimer's&Dementia.
The myth of fish oil supplements
Although DHA, which is rich in fish oil, is believed to be beneficial for neurological function and has been heavily promoted by businesses in various nutritional advertisements, there is actually no clinical trial proving that supplementing DHA alone has a significant therapeutic effect on Alzheimer's disease.
Alzheimer's disease, commonly known as senile dementia, is a neurodegenerative disease with insidious onset and long course. The patient's brain will develop neurofibrillary tangles and amyloid plaques, leading to neuronal death. During the years to decades of illness, patients will gradually experience symptoms such as cognitive impairment, memory loss, and physical dysfunction, ultimately leading to the inability to take care of themselves and even death.
With the increasing aging population worldwide, the number of people suffering from Alzheimer's disease is on the rise. Taking China as an example, according to a recent national cross-sectional study, there are 15.07 million cognitive impairment patients aged 60 and above in China, of which nearly 10 million are Alzheimer's disease patients. Dementia is not entirely a geriatric disease, and there is a trend towards younger age groups. Currently, about 12.5% of the affected population are middle-aged people aged 40 to 60.
At present, there is no drug that can treat Alzheimer's disease, but studies have shown that a good lifestyle and specific dietary habits can help reduce the risk of the disease. Among them, DHA, which is rich in fish oil, has been highly anticipated by researchers.
DHA (docosahexaenoic acid) is a type of Omega-3 unsaturated fatty acid that plays an important role in neural development and cognitive function. However, its synthesis efficiency in the human body is relatively low and it needs to be obtained through diet. Scientists have found that specific dietary styles rich in DHA have a certain preventive effect on Alzheimer's disease, such as the so-called 'Mediterranean diet'.
