Eating fish at least once a week helps teen boys increase intelligence

According to the study, which involved nearly 4,000 teenagers published in the Acta Paediatrica March issue, 15-year-old boys ate fish at least once a week with higher cognitive skills at age 18 for those who eat fish less often.

Eating fish once a week is enough to increase the intelligence index of the ability to perceive the relationship of things, the ability to speak and combine up to 6%, while eating fish on once a week increases the ratio. nearly 11%.

Swedish researchers compared the answer of 3,972 male students to the interview with a cognitive index in Swedish recruitment figures 3 years later. Professor Kjell Torén of Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg and one of the scientists involved in the study, said: 'We see a clear connection between eating fish regularly and just Higher numbers when teenagers eat fish at least once a week. When they eat fish once a week, this increase is almost double. '

'This finding is significant because research is done for children aged 15 to 18, when education can play a decisive role for the rest of humanity'.

The team found that:

- 58% of boys participated in the study eating fish at least once a week and 20% of them ate fish once a week.

- When boys eat fish once a week, the combined IQ is 12% higher than those who eat fish less than once a week. Children who eat fish once a week have a 7% higher index.

- The verbal intelligence index for children who eat fish on once a week is 9% higher than those who eat fish less than once a week. Those who ate only once a week had a score of 4% higher.

- The trend is also repeated in the intelligent index of the ability to identify relationships between things. Children who eat fish on one occasion a week have an 11% higher index than those who eat less than once a week. Those who ate fish only once a week had an index higher than 7%.

New research shows that 15-year-old boys eat fish at least once a week with higher cognitive skills at age 18 than those who eat fish less often. (Photo: iStockphoto)

Professor Torén said: 'Many studies have shown that fish can help develop the nervous system in children, reducing the risk of neurodevelopment in middle age and later, and very beneficial. For babies whose mothers eat fish during pregnancy '.

'But we know that this is the first large-scale study to explore the impact of fish eating on young people. The exact mechanism of linking fish eating to impaired cognitive abilities is not well understood. '

Professor Torén explains: 'The most widely known hypothesis is that long-chain fatty acids that do not produce cholesterone in fish have a positive effect on cognitive ability.'

'Fish contain both omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids accumulated in the brain when the embryo develops. Other hypotheses have also been emphasized on the anti-inflammatory effects of blood vessels and the role of cytokine - the chemical that affects the immune system '.

In order to separate the impact of fish eating on the study subjects, the group had to analyze many factors, including the ethnicity in which they lived, the level of education of their parents, the status of the subjects, and the level of regular exercise as well as weight.

The lead author Dr. Maria Aberg of the Center for Brain Restoration and Recovery at the University of Gothenburg concluded: 'Studying carefully the components, we can clearly see there is a significant relationship between eating fish often. Through age 15 and increased cognitive ability at the age of 18. We also see this relationship between eating fish and intelligence in adolescents regardless of their parents 'level of education.'

The researchers plan to conduct additional research to see if the type of fish eaten, such as lean fish in breaded or fatty fish such as salmon, makes a difference in good results. is not. Dr. Aberg said: 'But during this time, with the presence of fish in the diet, the cognitive ability of adolescent boys increased significantly'.

Refer:
Åberg et al.Fish intake of Swedish male adolescents is a predictor of cognitive performance.Acta Paediatrica, 2009;98 (3): 555 DOI: 10.1111 / j.1651-2227.2008.01103.x