The effects of omega-3 fatty acids from flaxseed oil on genetic and metabolic profiles in patients with gestational diabetes mellitus: a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial.
Abstract
This study was performed to evaluate the effects of omega-3 fatty acids from flaxseed oil on genetic and metabolic profiles in patients with gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM). This randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial was per...
This study was performed to evaluate the effects of omega-3 fatty acids from flaxseed oil on genetic and metabolic profiles in patients with gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM). This randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial was performed in 60 women with GDM. Participants were randomly divided into two groups to intake either 2 x 1,000 mg/day omega-3 fatty acids from flaxseed oil containing 400 mg α-linolenic acid in each capsule (n=30) or placebo (n=30) for 6 weeks. Omega-3 fatty acids intake upregulated peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma (P<0.001) and low-density lipoprotein receptor (P=0.004), and downregulated gene expression of interleukin-1 (P=0.002) and tumor necrosis factor alpha (P=0.001) in peripheral blood mononuclear cells of subjects with GDM. In addition, omega-3 fatty acids supplementation reduced fasting plasma glucose (P=0.001), insulin levels (P=0.001) and insulin resistance (P<0.001), and increased insulin sensitivity (P=0.005) when compared with the placebo. Additionally, omega-3 fatty acids supplementation was associated with a decrease in triglycerides (P<0.001), VLDL-cholesterol (P<0.001), total cholesterol (P=0.01) and total-/HDL-cholesterol ratio (P=0.01) when compared with placebo. Omega-3 fatty acids administration was also associated with a significant reduction in high sensitivity C-reactive protein (P=0.006) and malondialdehyde (P<0.001), and an increase in total nitrite (P<0.001) and total glutathione levels (P=0.006) when compared with the placebo. Omega-3 fatty acids supplementation for 6 weeks to women with GDM had beneficial effects on gene expression related to insulin, lipid and inflammation, glycemic control, lipids, inflammatory markers and oxidative stress.This study was registered in the Iranian website (www.irct.ir) for registration of clinical trials (http://www.irct.ir: IRCT20170513033941N42).