Omega-3 linked to cancer and allergies
Source: AFP |
July 12, 2013, Friday
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OMEGA-3 fatty acids, often taken to boost health, appear to increase the risk of childhood allergies and prostate cancer, according to two studies unveiled yesterday.
Newborns with high levels of unsaturated fats in their blood were more prone to develop an allergy than those with lower blood concentrations, according to a probe by three Swedish universities.
"It is already known that unsaturated fatty acids inhibit activation of the immune system. This can be useful when you are old," Agnes Wold, a physician at the clinical microbiology department of Gothenburg's Sahlgrenska University Hospital, said. "But the baby's immune system needs to get a kick start, otherwise it does not develop properly," she said.
Previous research has indicated that children who at an early age were given fish, which is famously high in omega-3 fatty acids, were less likely to get an allergy.
However, another author of the study, food science professor Ann-Sofie Sandberg, cautioned against avoiding fish.
Separately, a large study published in Britain's Journal of the National Cancer Institute found that three omega-3 fatty acids were associated with an increase of between 43 and 71 percent in the risk of developing prostate cancer.
The biggest increase in risk was for so-called high-grade prostate cancer, whose tumors are more likely to be fatal.
The study, led by scientists at the US Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, amplifies previous findings in 2011 that suggested these fatty acids play an unexplained role in initiating prostate cancer.
"Recommendations to increase ... (omega-3) intake, in particular through supplementation, should consider its potential risks," said the paper.
Newborns with high levels of unsaturated fats in their blood were more prone to develop an allergy than those with lower blood concentrations, according to a probe by three Swedish universities.
"It is already known that unsaturated fatty acids inhibit activation of the immune system. This can be useful when you are old," Agnes Wold, a physician at the clinical microbiology department of Gothenburg's Sahlgrenska University Hospital, said. "But the baby's immune system needs to get a kick start, otherwise it does not develop properly," she said.
Previous research has indicated that children who at an early age were given fish, which is famously high in omega-3 fatty acids, were less likely to get an allergy.
However, another author of the study, food science professor Ann-Sofie Sandberg, cautioned against avoiding fish.
Separately, a large study published in Britain's Journal of the National Cancer Institute found that three omega-3 fatty acids were associated with an increase of between 43 and 71 percent in the risk of developing prostate cancer.
The biggest increase in risk was for so-called high-grade prostate cancer, whose tumors are more likely to be fatal.
The study, led by scientists at the US Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, amplifies previous findings in 2011 that suggested these fatty acids play an unexplained role in initiating prostate cancer.
"Recommendations to increase ... (omega-3) intake, in particular through supplementation, should consider its potential risks," said the paper.
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