Previous studies showed a relationship between omega-3s, the fatty acids in many types of fish, and improved intelligence, as well as Omega-3s and better sleep. But they've never all been connected before. This work, conducted by Jianghong Liu, Jennifer Pinto-Martin and Alexandra Hanlon of the School of Nursing and 'Penn Integrates Knowledge' Professor, Adrian Raine, reveals that sleep might be the potential missing link between fish intake and intelligence.
For the study, a cohort of 541 9- to 11-year-olds in China, 54 percent boys and 46 percent girls, completed a questionnaire about how often they consumed fish in the past month, with options ranging from "never" to "at least once per week." They also took the Chinese version of an IQ test called the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-Revised, which examines verbal and non-verbal skills such as vocabulary and coding.
"Lack of sleep is associated with antisocial behavior; poor cognition is associated with antisocial behavior," said Raine. "We have found that Omega-3 supplements reduce antisocial behavior, so it's not too surprising that fish is behind this."
Comment: Damned if you do, damned if you don't. If the remedies work they'll be subject to regulation, increase in price and still side-lined in favour of pharmaceuticals. If they don't work they'll be dismissed as snake-oil. Guess the FDA doesn't have to make up its mind. They just have to label homeopathy as "bad" and let people choose the narrative they like to justify it.
The idea that there could be poor manufacturing processes that lead to some form of contamination in a homeopathic remedy certainly isn't beyond the scope of the possible. And certainly everyone wants to know that the products they're taking are safe. But put within the context of the FDA, and other government agencies, ongoing battle against homeopathy, this just seems like another excuse to regulate it out of existence.
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