IF you need another reason to eat more fish, there is a latest discovery that could help nudge you in that direction.
Taking at least two portions of fish a week could help protect diabetics from the dangers of kidney disease.
In the November issue of the American Journal of Kidney Diseases, British researchers analysed the records of more than 22,300 middle-aged and older English men and women who were part of a large European cancer study.
They wanted to examine the effect of eating fish on kidney disease.
The study subjects answered questionnaires about diet habits.
This included how much fish they ate weekly.
They also provided urine samples that were analysed for the presence of a protein called albumin ? an indicator of kidney damage.
The researchers reported that of the 517 study subjects who had diabetes (most of whom had type 2 which is by far the most common form of the disease), those who on average ate less than one serving of fish each week were four times more likely to have albumin in their urine than people with diabetes who ate fish twice a week.
Amazing isn?t it? ?Protein in the urine is one of the earliest signs of kidney disease, a serious complication of diabetes,? says study co-author Amanda Adler, an epidemiologist with the Medical Research Council Epidemiology Unit at Addenbrooke?s Hospital in Cambridge.
Adler speculates that the nutrient content of fish may affect kidney function and improve blood glucose control.
?We didn?t ask about the type of fish people ate, but in this part of England people eat cod, plaice, haddock, canned tuna,? she said.
?Even fish and chips would have been included.? To prove fish could be a kidney disease-fighting factor in diabetes, clinical trials would be required in which people with diabetes ate fish and others did not, says Susan Spratt, assistant professor of medicine in the division of endocrinology at Duke University Medical Centre.
?But it wouldn?t hurt patients to eat more fish,? says Spratt, who recommends fish oil to lower triglycerides in her diabetes patients who do not respond to or tolerate other therapies.
For dinner, stick with low-fat broiled and baked recipes, she said.
The concerns about eating fish are ocean toxins which are increasingly becoming worse.
Modern day toxins end up in our land waters and eventually make their way to sea where the fish feed on them.
So many articles have been written many times about the benefits of eating fish, especially cold-water varieties like salmon, trout, and cod.
Among other vital nutrients, they are high in the omega-3 fatty acids that your heart needs to stay healthy and beating strong.
The fact that they can help offset the dangers of kidney disease is a nice bonus.
While fish protein is a very beneficial nutrient, scientists feel that much of the goodness of fish is the omega 3 fatty acids that are found in huge quantities in fish.
You can take fish oil supplements that have become the rage the world over after a series of experiments proved it to be a vital supplement against heart disease in particular.
The advantage with fish oil supplements is that the newer version of fish oils apply a process called omatech that removes all the toxins.
In fact, suppliers give an unconditional money back guarantee on purity.
Datuk Dr Rajen M. is a pharmacist with a doctorate in holistic medicine. Email him at health@po.jaring.my
This story was first published in the New Straits Times on Dec 7, 2008.
