ONE of the world’ s most highly respected experts in human nutrition and brain function has urged greater consumption of seafood to reverse the growth of mental health problems in developed nations.
Professor Michael Crawford, Director of the Institute of Brain Chemistry & Human Nutrition at the University of North London, has told an international conference mental health is a bigger problem than obesity and that one way to tackle it is to eat more seafood.
Prof. Crawford described the rise in brain disorders and mental health problems associated with a deficiency in Omega 3 oils as “ the most pressing health issue of the 21st century: forget obesity, mental health is the real disaster already beginning to happen” .
He was speaking at the recent World Seafood Congress in Dublin, Ireland, and one of the Australian delegates to that conference was Mr Roy Palmer, Deputy Chair of the government-industry body, Seafood Services Australia (SSA).
Mr Palmer, who has just returned to Australia, said the professor’ s warning was dramatic.
“ Professor Crawford told the Congress that mental health has overtaken heart disease as the leading medical health problem in Europe and was estimated in 2004 to cost 386 billion Euro a year or more than $600 billion Australian, an enormous sum of money,” Mr Palmer said.
“ His message was ‘ Eat more fish and substantially lessen your risk of developing mental health problems’ . Of course, ‘ Eat more fish’ was a message well received by an audience of people associated with the seafood industry but Professor Crawford’ s interest is not in making fishmongers wealthy but reversing the growing personal and economic cost of mental health problems across the developed world.
“ He said populations in some developed countries are 50 times more likely to develop depression than populations like that of Japan, where seafood consumption is very high. He suggested our western meat and wheat-based diet, and falling consumption of seafood-based Omega 3 fatty acids (oils), is resulting in this significant rise in brain ill health.
“ To quote Professor Crawford directly, ‘ We are seeing more and more scientific evidence linking brain disorders and diet. For example, researchers now know women suffering from post-natal depression produce breast milk that is very low in DHA, the boss of the Omega 3 family. Similarly, preliminary research into Alzheimer’ s Disease shows sufferers are also losing this critical DHA from their brain.
“ He told us: ‘ It’ s simple: our brain is made of marine fats. If we do not feed it the food it requires to remain healthy - fish and specifically Omega 3 fats - then we are looking at serious brain problems like depression, bipolar disorder and childhood behavioural problems like ADHD, dyslexia and dyspraxia.’
“ He cautioned against the trend of relying on Omega 3 supplements or the ever-growing list of Omega 3-enhanced food products. Supplements are OK as an emergency measure, he said, but that the best source of Omega 3 fatty acids is to be found in natural products and seafood is by far the main source.
“ The message he had for international seafood people - fishermen, marketers, researchers and managers – is that the world needs to eat more fish and we must look after fish stocks and ensure they are sustainable. That is the basis of all fisheries management in Australia already but it’ s a point that all delegates to the World Seafood Congress took on board.
Mr Palmer added that SSA has a website where further information about the health benefits of seafood is available: http://www.seafood.net.au/health/ |
