The anti-inflammatory benefits of omega-3 fatty acids are well known, but a new study finds that they could preserve lung function as we age.
The researchers observed the strongest associations for docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), an omega-3 fatty acid that’s found at high levels in fatty fish such as salmon, tuna, and sardines. DHA is also available as a dietary supplement.
About the Study
Study participants were generally healthy when the study began, with most having no evidence of chronic lung disease. The racially diverse group had an average age of 56. The researchers followed participants for an average of seven years.“Our study was unique in a number of ways,” Ms. Patchen said. “One, a lot of the previous work has been cross-sectional, as in looking at individuals at one point in time. What we did was look at it over time, for up to 20 years and saw that omega-3s were predictive for how lung function changes. It helps to get at that cause and effect relationship.”
The study provides the impetus for a future causal study that would provide an omega-3 intervention and measure how that changes the outcome. This study examined existing evidence.
Prevention May Be the Best Hope
While eating fatty acids may help prevent lung issues, they don’t appear to cure lung dysfunction after the fact. In fact, evidence on fatty acids used as an intervention for severe lung dysfunction appears to show the opposite effect, potentially causing more harm than good.Such evidence bolsters the argument that using omega-3 fatty acids to prevent disease is more promising than using them to treat disease and improve health outcomes.
The Value of Anti-Inflammatories
The anti-inflammatory effect of omega-3 fatty acids has spurred significant research into how diet can affect diseases such as cancer and cardiovascular disease.“We know largely from studies on smoking that inflammation caused by smoking or other environmental exposures, such as pollution, has a large impact on lung health and lung disease,” Ms. Patchen said.
Because omega-3s have an anti-inflammatory function, Ms. Patchen says there’s a plausible biological link between eating more omega-3s and facing a lower risk of these diseases.
Inflammation is involved in the pathology of most every pulmonary disease including pneumonia, asthma, COPD, and even in bacterial and viral infections.
Inflammation is a complicated but essential biological function that instigates many mechanisms to defend the body against pathogens and repair tissue. However, when inflammation is prolonged, it can deplete the body and contribute to other diseases. Ideally, inflammation is a healthy response to infection-causing pathogens, physical trauma, and sensitivity to toxins, pollutants, irritants, and allergens.
“Because the lung is a vital organ for gas exchange, excessive inflammation can be life threatening. Because the lung is constantly exposed to harmful pathogens, an immediate and intense defense action (mainly inflammation) is required to eliminate the invaders as early as possible. A delicate balance between inflammation and anti-inflammation is essential for lung homeostasis,” the journal reads.
Anti-inflammatory mediators such as omega-3s are believed to exert protective actions by contributing to biological actions that control vascular inflammation and reduce systemic inflammation.
COVID and Lung Function
“Chronic underlying disease is one of the most important risk factors in elder pneumonia,” according to the 2015 article.
As Ms. Patchen explained: “Lung function typically peaks in the mid-20s to early 30s and then starts declining. Factors that can help decrease the rate of decline are potential therapies for preventing adverse long-term lung health.”
“I think there’s potential because a similar mechanism could be happening with long COVID as we start to learn more about that,” Ms. Patchen said. “The same hypothesis about the anti-inflammatory effects of the omega-3s and how they could be working in the lungs could apply in multiple situations. There are studies that still need to be done. This is certainly not the end of the story for omega-3s.”