This IS good news, but I'd like to read the original study to determine what the 777 elderly people were consuming. The article correctly states that Omega-3s are found in “salmon and chia seeds", seeds", but the oils in chia seeds are primarily composed of alpha-linolenic acid (ALA), a type of omega-3 fatty acid, which the body can convert into the more readily usable forms of EPA and DHA through a series of metabolic reactions. However, this conversion process is quite inefficient.
Studies show that only a small percentage (5%) of ALA is typically converted to EPA, and even less to DHA. The crucial factor here is that the conversion rate goes down as we get older, approaching 1% by age 80:
"The researchers found that older adults who consumed a gram of omega-3s every day were biologically younger and healthier than their peers who didn't supplement the nutrient - shaving off three to four months of aging over the course of three years".
That's an impressive addition of 1 more year every 9-10 years.
