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Nutrition, Vitamins & Supplements for Seniors
Omega-3 from Fish Oil May Halt Muscle Loss in Senior
Citizens, Athletes
Ability to convert food into muscle proteins
decreases with age
 May 9, 2007 – Omega-3 fatty acids from fish oil
have been found to benefit senior citizens in many areas associated with
aging. Now, researchers have added one more - a big one. It appears to
prevent the loss of muscle mass, which is the cause of many problems for
the elderly.
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In mammals, the ability to use nutrients from food
and convert them into muscle proteins decreases with age. Though the
exact cause of this is still unclear, but insulin resistance of aging
muscle cells has been suggested as a possible answer.
Since omega-3 fatty acids are known to improve
glucose metabolism in people and animals showing insulin resistance, the
researchers decided to test whether omega-3’s could also influence
protein metabolism.
The research team led by Carole Thivierge, from
Université Laval’s Institute of Nutraceutics and Functional Foods, shows
that omega-3 fatty acids from fish oil have a positive effect on the
metabolism of muscle proteins. This finding, published in a recent
edition of the Journal of Physiology, could have significant
implications in the fields of animal farming as well as human health.
Restoring insulin sensitivity through the use of
marine omega-3 fatty acids could prevent the loss of muscle mass in
older people and, by the same token, prevent the various health problems
associated with it, believes Thivierge.
She also suggests that omega-3’s could help
athletes trying to increase their muscle mass. "However, it should not
be seen as a miracle product," she points out. "For increased muscle
protein metabolism to take place in people younger than 50, physical
training is still required," she concludes.
The researchers added supplements containing either
omega-3’s from fish oil or a mixture of cottonseed and olive oils
without omega-3’s to the regular diet of steers.
After five weeks, animals with the marine omega-3
diet showed increased sensitivity to insulin which, in turn, improved
protein metabolism - twice the amount of amino acids was used by their
bodies to synthesize proteins, especially in muscles.
So it appears that omega-3 fatty acids added to the
steers’ diet replaced other fatty acids in muscle cells and improved
their functioning.
This finding could have significant implications in
the field of animal farming, according to Thivierge, also a professor in
Université Laval’s Department of Animal Sciences, who undertook this
study in order to find an alternative to hormonal growth stimulation in
beef cattle.
At 4 to 6 months of age, calves become less
efficient at converting food into muscle mass, which has a negative
impact on farming profitability. "Adding fish oil to their diet could
prevent this decline by restoring insulin sensitivity in aging animals,"
suggests the researcher. "
In addition, it could contribute to reducing the
amount of by-product emissions in the environment, since animals that
are given omega-3’s spontaneously eat 10% less food to achieve the same
weight gain," points out Thivierge.
Notes:
In addition to Thivierge, the article was signed by
Andrée-Anne Gingras, Phillip James White, Yvan Chouinard, Luce
Dombrowski, Alexandre Myre, Karen Bergeron, and André Marette from the
Institute of Nutraceutics and Functional Foods; Pierre Julien from
Université Laval Hospital Research Center; Yvon Couture and Pascal
Dubreuil from Université de Montréal; and Teresa Davis from the Baylor
College of Medicine.
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