Dietary intake of omega-3 fatty acids was associated with a lower incidence of autoantibodies in the blood that signal the immune system to attack insulin-producing cells in the pancreas. Omega-3 fatty acids are known to have anti-inflammatory properties, and inflammation is believed to play a major role in the development of type 1 diabetes through destruction of these insulin-producing cells.

“The thinking is that omega-3 may increase the body’s ability to fight the inflammation that leads to type 1 diabetes,” researcher Jill M. Norris, MPH, PHD announced yesterday.

“This is a preliminary study,” she says. “We really can’t make dietary recommendations based on these findings.”

The study appears in the Sept. 27 issue of TheJournal of the American Medical Association.

Omega-3, Diabetes Research
In adults, omega-3 rich diets are believed to lower cardiovascular risk, and in babies the fatty acid is believed to boost brain development.

A 2003 study from Norway was one of the first human trials to suggest a protective role for omega-3 fatty acids in type 1 diabetes. Researchers reported a lower incidence of omega-3-rich cod liver oil supplementation during infancy in children with diabetes, compared to children without the disease.

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