Food and Drink

Two portions of oily fish a week can reverse damage caused by junk food diet

Just two portions of oily fish a week can reverse the damage caused by a junk food diet, suggests new research.

The study shows eating fish such as mackerel, salmon and pilchards twice a week can clear up serious problems caused to the body’s immune system by obesity.

And supplemented milk could soon reverse changes caused to the immune system by overeating even more dramatically

It has long been known that obesity can wreck havoc on the immune system, leading to potentially life-threatening conditions, such as type 2 diabetes, coronary heart disease, cancer, and stroke. The affects are similar to those caused by ageing.

Obesity can prevent people producing enough antibodies, the proteins which attack bacteria and viruses when the body comes under threat.

Study author Dr Fatima Perez de Heredia (COR), of Liverpool John Moores University, said: “‘This is the first study, at least to our knowledge, to suggest the efficacy of 2-hydroxyoleic acid for reversing obesity-associated immune alterations and improving oxidative stress.

“Our findings support a link between obesity and immunosenescence and suggest a potential therapeutic tool for obesity-related immune dysfunction.”

The findings were published in the journal Experimental Physiology.

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Jack Peat

Jack is a business and economics journalist and the founder of The London Economic (TLE). He has contributed articles to VICE, Huffington Post and Independent and is a published author. Jack read History at the University of Wales, Bangor and has a Masters in Journalism from the University of Newcastle-upon-Tyne.

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