Essential Fatty Acids and the Brain

Essential fatty acids and the brain.

OBJECTIVE To review the role of essential fatty acids in brain membrane function and in the genesis of psychiatric disease. METHOD Medline databases were searched for published articles with links among the following key words: essential fatty acids, omega-3 fatty acids, docosahexanoic acid, eicosapentanoic acid, arachidonic acid, neurotransmission, phospholipase A2, depression, schizophrenia...

Essential fatty acids and human brain.

The human brain is nearly 60 percent fat. We've learned in recent years that fatty acids are among the most crucial molecules that determine your brain's integrity and ability to perform. Essential fatty acids (EFAs) are required for maintenance of optimal health but they can not synthesized by the body and must be obtained from dietary sources. Clinical observation studies has related imbalanc...

Essential Fatty Acids and Brain Development

Nutrition of the infant is of paramount importance for at least two main reasons: (a) there is a fast rate of growth and tissue development; (b) organ specific phases of development take place, which are likely to be determinants of subsequent performance. Tissue development involves increase in size and number of cells. The fast rate of growth in infancy is reflected in the high energy require...

Essential fatty acids and the brain: possible health implications.

Linoleic and alpha-linolenic acid are essential for normal cellular function, and act as precursors for the synthesis of longer chained polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) such as arachidonic (AA), eicosapentaenoic (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acids (DHA), which have been shown to partake in numerous cellular functions affecting membrane fluidity, membrane enzyme activities and eicosanoid synthesi...

Essential fatty acids and inflammation.