those boys who ate fish more than once a week reported even better results...

A research project conducted in Sweden shows that eating fish regularly can actually improve the intelligence of teenagers. The research done on a group of boys from ages fifteen to eighteen saw that those who consumed fish at least weekly scored higher in cognitive testing when they reached the age of eighteen when compared to those boys who ate fish infrequently.

The researchers claimed that fish consumed once a week boosted “verbal and visuospatial intelligence” by an average of six percent in those who were tested. Interestingly those boys who ate fish more than once a week reported even better results, (+12%) in cognitive testing.

Almost 4,000 teenagers were looked at for this survey which was undertaken by researchers from the Centre for Brain Repair and Rehabilitation and the Sahlgrenska Academy both at the University of Gothenburg.  Professor Kjell Toren said that the results should be given a lot of importance especially as between the ages of fifteen and eighteen the learning achievements of men and the result they got in their exams were crucial to determining what they did with the rest of their lives. 

The researchers said they have not identified the exact functions and mechanisms of how increased fish consumption leads to an improved cognitive ability but they suspect that it has something to do with the long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids which are present in fish. The researchers said that they had even be looked at the parental educational levels, exercise habits, body weights and general well being of all the children so that they could properly identify the increased cognitive ability as being linked to fish consumption and nothing else.

The researchers want to continue their studies to find out whether different types of fish could give better cognitive results than other types. The research was published in the journal Acta Paediatrica.

Ukmedix News has on more than one occasion advocated the consumption of fish as being particularly good for your heart and general health. This new research adds to the weight of evidence which argues that fish should be a staple part of any healthy diet.