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26 Weeks' Dietary Supplementation With DHA- and EPA-enriched Oils on Cerebral Blood Flow in Healthy Adults

Not Applicable
Completed
Conditions
Neurovascular Coupling
Interventions
Dietary Supplement: Olive oil Placebo
Dietary Supplement: EPA-rich
Dietary Supplement: DHA-rich
Registration Number
NCT03158545
Lead Sponsor
Northumbria University
Brief Summary

The purpose of this study is to investigate the effects of EPA- and DHA-enriched omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid dietary supplements on cerebral blood flow during a series of cognitive, mathematical subtraction tasks and subjective ratings of task difficulty before and after 26 weeks of supplementation

Detailed Description

Not available

Recruitment & Eligibility

Status
COMPLETED
Sex
All
Target Recruitment
78
Inclusion Criteria
  • Aged 25 to 49 years inclusive
  • Males and females
  • Self-report of good health
Exclusion Criteria
  • English is not first language (some of the cognitive tasks have only been validated in native English speakers)
  • Habitual consumption of oily fish exceeds one fish meal per week (see Appendix I)
  • Habitual consumption of omega-3 dietary supplements in the previous 6 months
  • Habitual use of dietary supplements within the last month (defined as more than 3 consecutive days or 4 days in total; some supplements that do not impact upon cognitive function e.g. garlic, protein, calcium are allowed. Please check with the research team if you are unsure)
  • Are a smoker or consume any nicotine replacement products (e.g. chewing gum, e-cigarettes)
  • Food allergies or sensitivities to any of the ingredients contained in the investigational product or any other foodstuff
  • Pregnant, trying to get pregnant or breast feeding
  • Body Mass Index outside of the range 18-35 kg/m2
  • High blood pressure (systolic over 159 mm Hg or diastolic over 99 mm Hg)
  • Currently taking blood pressure medication
  • Currently taking blood thinning medication (e.g. aspirin, warfarin, heparin)
  • Have a respiratory disorder that requires regular medication (Note: participants with asthma who only take their medication occasionally/as required are eligible for this study)
  • Have frequent migraines that require medication (more than or equal to 1 per month)
  • History or current diagnosis of drug/alcohol abuse
  • History of kidney or liver disease, or other severe diseases of the gastrointestinal tract (e.g. iron accumulation, iron utilization disorders, hypercalcaemia, hypercalcaemia), that are likely to interfere with metabolism/absorption/secretion of the product under investigation
  • History of neurological or psychiatric illness (excluding depressive illness and anxiety)
  • History of head trauma
  • Sleep disturbances and/or are taking sleep aid medication
  • Blood disorders (e.g. anaemia, haemophilia, thrombocytosis)
  • Diagnosis of type I or type II diabetes
  • Heart disorder, or vascular illness
  • Current diagnosis of depression and/or anxiety
  • Over- or under-active thyroid
  • Chronic gastrointestinal problems (e.g. Inflammatory Bowel Disease, Irritable Bowel Syndrome, celiac disease)
  • Any known active infections
  • Diagnosed with syphilis, hepatitis, the Human T - lymphotropic virus or the Human Immunodeficiency Virus
  • Current or past breast cancer diagnosis and/or a mastectomy
  • Health condition that would prevent fulfilment of the study requirements
  • Currently participating in or in the past 4 weeks participated in other clinical or nutrition intervention studies

Study & Design

Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Study Design
PARALLEL
Arm && Interventions
GroupInterventionDescription
Olive oil PlaceboOlive oil Placebo3 x 1 g capsules daily Placebo: olive oil
EPA-richEPA-rich3 x 1 g capsules daily containing EPA-enriched oil
DHA-richDHA-rich3 x 1 g capsules daily containing DHA-enriched oil
Primary Outcome Measures
NameTimeMethod
Cerebral Blood FlowParticipants are assessed pre and post 6 months of supplementation

Near Infrared Spectroscopy Outcomes for cerebral blood flow measurment

Secondary Outcome Measures
NameTimeMethod
Subjective Task DifficultyParticipants are assessed pre and post 6 months of supplementation

participants rate how mentally challenging they find the cognitive tasks

Cognitive PerformanceParticipants are assessed pre and post 6 months of supplementation

performance on numerical subtraction tasks

Trial Locations

Locations (1)

Northumbria University

🇬🇧

Newcastle upon Tyne, Tyne and Wear, United Kingdom

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