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Cited by 40Fatty Acid Research and HealthDementia and Cognitive Impairment ResearchAlzheimer's disease research and treatments

Red blood cell DHA is inversely associated with risk of incident Alzheimer's disease and all-cause dementia: Framingham Offspring Study

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Sala-Vila, Aleix, Satizabal, Claudia L., Tintle, Nathan, Melo van Lent, Debora, Vasan, Ramachandran S., Beiser, Alexa S., Seshadri, Sudha, Harris, William S.·2022·Nutrients
DOI 10.3390/nu14122408PMC PMC9228504
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Abstract

Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) might help prevent Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Red blood cell (RBC) status of DHA is an objective measure of long-term dietary DHA intake. In this prospective observational study conducted within the Framingham Offspring Cohort (1490 dementia-free participants aged ≥65 years old), we examined the association of RBC DHA with incident AD, testing for an interaction with APOE-ε4 carriership. During the follow-up (median, 7.2 years), 131 cases of AD were documented. In fully adjusted models, risk for incident AD in the highest RBC DHA quintile (Q5) was 49% lower compared with the lowest quintile (Q1) (Hazard ratio [HR]: 0.51, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.27, 0.96). An increase in RBC DHA from Q1 to Q5 was predicted to provide an estimated 4.7 additional years of life free of AD. We observed an interaction DHA × APOE-ε4 carriership for AD. Borderline statistical significance for a lower risk of AD was observed per standard deviation increase in RBC DHA (HR: 0.71, 95% CI: 0.51, 1.00, p = 0.053) in APOE-ε4 carriers, but not in non-carriers (HR: 0.85, 95% CI: 0.65, 1.11, p = 0.240). These findings add to the increasing body of literature suggesting a robust association worth exploring dietary DHA as one strategy to prevent or delay AD.

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  • Higher levels of omega-3 biomarkers are associated with lower risk for ASCVD, Alzheimer's disease, total dementia, heart failure, diabetes, suicidal ideation/self-harm, poor lung function, colorectal cancer, several other malignancies, atopic dermatitis, hospitalization for sepsis, liver cirrhosis, chronic kidney disease, frailty, and hip fractures.

    “Other biomarker-based studies have found higher levels of omega-3s to be associated with lower risk for ASCVD116, Alzheimer’s disease130 and total dementia130, heart failure131, diabetes132, suicidal ideation/self-harm133, poor lung function134, colorectal cancer135 and several other malignancies136, atopic dermatitis137, hospitalization for sepsis138, liver cirrhosis139, chronic kidney disease140”

    From Effects of Omega-3 Fatty Acid Treatment on Risk for Atrial Fibrillation: An Updated Meta-Analysis of 35 Trials including 114 592 Individuals (2026) · cites this paper as [130]

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Sorted by citations

Authors
Sala-Vila, A., Satizabal, C. L., Tintle, N., Melo van Lent, D., Vasan, R. S., Beiser, A. S., Seshadri, S., & Harris, W. S.
Affiliations
  • Fatty Acid Research Institute, Sioux Falls, SD 57106, USA
  • Glenn Biggs Institute for Alzheimer’s and Neurodegenerative Diseases, UT Health San Antonio, San Antonio, TX 78299, USA
  • Dordt University (US)
  • Boston University (US)
  • University of South Dakota (US)
ORCID
Venue
Nutrients
Publisher
MDPI AG
Published
2022-06-09
Volume
14
Issue
12
Pages
2408
ISSN
2072-6643 (ISSN-L)
DOI
10.3390/nu14122408
PMC
PMC9228504
OpenAlex
W4282840383
Cited by
40
References
5
Citations by year
2026: 10 · 2025: 8 · 2024: 9 · 2023: 11 · 2022: 2
FWCI
4.64
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Licence
Locations
  • Nutrients (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) (submittedVersion, cc-by-sa)
  • Repositori digital de la UPF (Universitat Pompeu Fabra) (submittedVersion, cc-by)
Funders
  • National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute contract for the Framingham Heart Study (N01-HC-25195, HHSN268201500001I, 75N92019D00031, R01 AG054076, R01 AG049607, U01 AG052409, R01 AG059421, RF1 AG063507, RF1 AG066524, U01 AG058589, P30 AG066546, R01 NS017950, UH2 NS100605, 2020-58-81-CR, R01 AG059727, UF1 NS125513)
  • National Institute on Aging (N01-HC-25195, HHSN268201500001I, 75N92019D00031, R01 AG054076, R01 AG049607, U01 AG052409, R01 AG059421, RF1 AG063507, RF1 AG066524, U01 AG058589, P30 AG066546, R01 NS017950, UH2 NS100605, 2020-58-81-CR, R01 AG059727, UF1 NS125513)
  • National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (N01-HC-25195, HHSN268201500001I, 75N92019D00031, R01 AG054076, R01 AG049607, U01 AG052409, R01 AG059421, RF1 AG063507, RF1 AG066524, U01 AG058589, P30 AG066546, R01 NS017950, UH2 NS100605, 2020-58-81-CR, R01 AG059727, UF1 NS125513)
  • Texas Alzheimer’s Research and Care Consortium (N01-HC-25195, HHSN268201500001I, 75N92019D00031, R01 AG054076, R01 AG049607, U01 AG052409, R01 AG059421, RF1 AG063507, RF1 AG066524, U01 AG058589, P30 AG066546, R01 NS017950, UH2 NS100605, 2020-58-81-CR, R01 AG059727, UF1 NS125513)
  • NIH (N01-HC-25195, HHSN268201500001I, 75N92019D00031, R01 AG054076, R01 AG049607, U01 AG052409, R01 AG059421, RF1 AG063507, RF1 AG066524, U01 AG058589, P30 AG066546, R01 NS017950, UH2 NS100605, 2020-58-81-CR, R01 AG059727, UF1 NS125513)
  • NIA (N01-HC-25195, HHSN268201500001I, 75N92019D00031, R01 AG054076, R01 AG049607, U01 AG052409, R01 AG059421, RF1 AG063507, RF1 AG066524, U01 AG058589, P30 AG066546, R01 NS017950, UH2 NS100605, 2020-58-81-CR, R01 AG059727, UF1 NS125513)
Topics
  • Health Sciences › Nursing › Nutrition and Dietetics › Fatty Acid Research and Health
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Psychiatry and Mental health › Dementia and Cognitive Impairment Research
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Physiology › Alzheimer's disease research and treatments
Keywords
docosahexaenoic acid, Alzheimer's disease, dementia, omega-3 fatty acids, dementia prevention, Framingham Offspring Study, older adults
MeSH terms
Aged, Alzheimer Disease, Apolipoproteins E, Docosahexaenoic Acids, Erythrocytes, Humans, Cohort Studies, Apolipoprotein E4

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