More Fish, Bigger Brain

I’m a sucker for imaging studies. I once volunteered for a study of anxiety so I could get a full MRI of my brain. Imaging studies often don’t include a lot of people, and a recent study entitled “Long-chain Omega-3 Fatty Acid Intake is Associated Positively with Corticolimbic Gray Matter Volume in Healthy Adults” weighs in at 55 patients. In it researchers used dietary recall to assess how much fish people eat.

The researchers then looked at very specific regions of the brain– hippocampus and the amygdala, two key brain areas for memory, mood, and fear regulation. They found more gray matter (which represents brain cells, and thus brain “strength” and health), in people who ate more fish.

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Drew Ramsey, MD

Drew Ramsey, M.D. is a psychiatrist, author, and farmer. He is a clear voice in the mental health conversation and one of psychiatry’s leading proponents of using nutritional interventions. He is an assistant clinical professor of psychiatry at Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons.

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