Australian Governments urged to boost seafood consumption to improve public health

Media release: 13 June 2010

Australian Governments urged to boost seafood consumption to improve public health

Australian Governments have been urged to encourage greater consumption of seafood to avoid a looming "epidemic" of mental ill health and other brain disorders.

This follows a warning from the world’s foremost authorities in neuroscience and nutrition, meeting in London recently, that western nations will suffer "unthinkable health, social and fiscal consequences” unless they increase consumption of DHA, an Omega-3 oil found most abundantly in seafood.

Mr Ted Loveday, Managing Director of Seafood Services Australia (SSA), said Australian Governments should heed the message from the London meeting and encourage greater consumption of seafood.

"One of SSA’s tasks is to help make Australians aware of the vital contribution fish and other seafood makes to good health," Mr Loveday said. "Scientists at the London conference want a return to what they term ‘traditional fish and seafood consumption’ to improve human health.

"They issued a statement calling for ‘a new focus to be placed on policies for health, food, agriculture, pollution of aquatic and marine resources and their rational use, with a restoration of traditional fish and seafood consumption.

"These experts said that brain disorders and mental ill health will be the top two burdens of ill health worldwide by 2020, and are the greatest threat to humankind today."

Professor Michael Crawford, Director of the Institute of Brain Chemistry & Human Nutrition at London Metropolitan University, said at the meeting: "We need to see action at the most fundamental level to circumvent the mental health epidemic facing our society. The issue must be addressed in school-level education; maternal and infant nutrition; food, agricultural and fisheries policies; and in moving to adequately address river, estuarine and coastal pollution.

"We estimate that the bulk of the mental health issues could potentially be addressed and the impending rise in disorders reversed through adequate nutrition and we urge all parties to come together in tackling this most serious of problems. The financial, social and political issues for the function of society and peace demand the highest priority be given to this issue."

Prof. Crawford added that the Institute of Brain Chemistry & Human Nutrition had identified the poor state of maternal nutrition in pregnancy associated with low birth weight, which in previous work they identified as starting with school children. They have also identified that an Omega-3 deficiency is now a global problem and is co-existing with iodine deficiency, to which some 1.6 billion people are at risk. Both deficiencies stunt brain development.

Mr Loveday said comparatively low levels of seafood consumption had ramifications for public health in Australia.

"Humans evolved with high levels of consumption of fish and other seafood, and today we still require many of the nutrients they contain," he said. "The Omega-3 oils, or ‘fish oils’, are the best known but seafood contains a package of very important nutrients, such as iodine, selenium, zinc, copper and iron, all important for good health, especially brain health.

"The recent scientific conference in the Royal Institute of Medicine, at which SSA was represented, highlighted that most people are eating insufficient quantities of seafood and their health is suffering as a result.

"Everyone should be eating fish or other seafood at least two to three times a week and it would be better to eat seafood even more often. That’s not hard, considering there are 21 meals eaten by the average Australian every week."

FURTHER INFORMATION: Mr Ted Loveday 0427 323 663

Note: DHA stands for docosahexaenoic acid.
A copy of the statement issued by scientists at the London conference (May 26-27) follows.

 

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World’s foremost omega-3 experts warn against mental health epidemic

The world’s foremost authorities in neuroscience and nutrition have today detailed evidence-based predictions to the incoming UK Government on the rise in brain disorders – urging them to tackle the root cause of the rise in brain disorders and mental ill health or face unthinkable health, social and fiscal consequences.

The scientists issued the stark warning on the need to tackle the root cause of adverse nutritional conditions during brain development ahead of the ‘DHA Celebration’ conference at The Royal Society of Medicine in central London, which will see the field’s principle experts coming together to mark the 40th anniversary of research into docosahexaenoic acid (the omega-3 fatty acid, DHA).

Last century, the nutritional paradigm for food and agricultural policies was rooted in the perceived need for protein, calories and body growth. However, it was not body growth that characterised human evolution: it was growth of the brain. No attention has been given in food policies or the food system to this - the one outstanding characteristic which makes us human.

Calling for a new focus to be placed on policies for health, food, agriculture, pollution of aquatic and marine resources and their rational use, with a restoration of traditional fish and seafood consumption, the experts have predicted that brain disorders and mental ill health will be the top two burdens of ill health worldwide by 2020, and are the greatest threat to humankind today.

Professor Michael Crawford, organiser and guest of honour at the ‘DHA Celebration’ conference said: "We need to see action at the most fundamental level to circumvent the mental health epidemic facing our society. The issue must be addressed in school-level education; maternal and infant nutrition; food, agricultural and fisheries policies; and in moving to adequately address river, estuarine and coastal pollution.

"We estimate that the bulk of the mental health issues could potentially be addressed and the impending rise in disorders reversed through adequate nutrition and we urge all parties to come together in tackling this most serious of problems. The financial, social and political issues for the function of society and peace demand the highest priority be given to this issue."

In the early 1970s, work by Professor Michael Crawford and Andrew Sinclair discovered that the brain needed DHA for its structure, growth and function. At the same time Professors Gene Anderson and Nicholas Bazan in the US recognised that vision required docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) followed by a demonstration on learning effects by Professor Claudio Galli in Milan. Since these early discoveries much new evidence has emerged describing the biological essentiality of DHA for vision and the brain, its function and behaviour.

Apart from overwhelming experimental evidence for the need to support brain growth during pre and early postnatal development, research conducted by the University of Bristol concluded that a DHA-poor diet could lead to a loss of verbal IQ, adverse prosocial, fine motor and social development scores and increase in behavioural problems.

When Crawford identified the DHA requirement for the brain in 1972, he published a book on the subject. Recognising that bad fats were a major cause of the rise in death from heart disease from a rarity at the beginning of the 20th Century to the number 1 killer by the 1970s, he predicted that as the brain is better protected but requires special and the right kind of essential fats, it would be next to suffer. Reviewing the book for the Sunday Times, journalist Graham Rose remarked that if correct and nothing was done then we would become a ‘race of morons’.

Just recently, Crawford’s research published by his Institute of Brain Chemistry and Human Nutrition identified the poor state of maternal nutrition in pregnancy associated with low birth weight, which in previous work they identified as starting with school children. They have also identified that an omega-3 deficiency is now a global problem as it is co-existing with iodine deficiency, to which some 1.6 billion people are at risk. Both deficiencies stunt brain development.

This global issue amplifies the urgent need for action, especially at the start of life, to prevent incidence of brain disorders and mental ill health continuing to rise this century as heart disease did last.

Coming together at the ‘DHA Press Conference’ on 26th May 2010, the group unveiled the latest research and scientific insights to make their comments on and recommendations for the future, with specific relevance to DHA consumption and its impact for human health.

Professor Michael Crawford, Director of the institute of Brain Chemistry and Human Nutrition, chaired the press conference, introducing presentations from other ‘Omega-3 Alliance’ speakers:

• Professor Robert McNamara Ph.D ‘DHA Supplementation and Child Psychiatry’ – the latest research into implications for brain function and behaviour in children
• Capt Joe Hibbeln MD ‘Mood of the Nation – a diet induced epidemic of distress’ – a closer look at omega-3 and global mental health
• Professor Tom Brenna Ph.D ‘US legislative debate’ – A call for change in US policy governing fish consumption 
• Professor Jack Winkler Ph.D ‘Fish versus plant debate’ – the proposed EU legislation governing RDAs and nutritional claims for omega-3s, plus the implications for human health

The presentations were followed by a Q&A session, featuring leading experts Nicholas Bazan (Louisiana), Stephen Cunnane (Sherbrooke), Tom Brenna (Cornell), Christopher Robinson (Little Foundation) and John Stein (Oxford).

Lord Hameed of Hampstead, President of the Little Foundation for Cerebral Palsy and Allied Neurodevelopmental Disorders will follow up the conference with a seminar at the House of Lords on the 14th June to raise awareness of the implications for the cost to Government and society of disorders of brain development including cerebral palsy. He will refer to the cost of mental ill health in the UK which, according to the DoH's own data, has risen to £77 billion in 2007 - greater than that of heart disease and cancer combined. Furthermore, The Wellcome Trust, one of the world's richest charities for medical research, has warned of a global crisis of nutrition in its 10 year strategic plan.

An ‘Evolution of DHA’ public exhibition will also be taking place for one month from 26th May at the Royal Society of Medicine’s library, 1 Wimpole Street, London.

To speak to an expert about the role of omega-3 in maintaining human health contact the Efamol team (Lucy Lott, Lynne Kelly or Stephanie Matson) at Pegasus PR on 01903 821550 or email llott@pegasuspr.co.uk / lkelly@pegasuspr.co.uk / smatson@pegasuspr.co.uk.  

-ENDS-

Ref: 8778 Date: 26th May 2010

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Seafood Services Australia is a not for profit company supported by the Australian seafood industry and the Australian Government through funding from the Fisheries Research and Development Corporation.

Issued: Sun Jun 6 21:51:01 EST

Reference-id: SSANEWS0273

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