FRIDAY, April 28 (HealthDay News) -- A relatively high intake of vitamin E and polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA) is associated with a lower risk of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), according to a study published online April 28 in the Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery, and Psychiatry.
Jan H. Veldink, M.D., of the University Medical Center Utrecht in the Netherlands, and colleagues assessed diet, PUFA and vitamin E intake in 132 patients with definite, probable or possible ALS and no family history of the disease, who attended their clinic between 2001 and 2002. They also assessed 220 healthy controls.
The researchers found that high PUFA consumption was associated with lower ALS risk (odds ratio, 0.40), and that PUFA and vitamin E seemed to work together in synergy. There was no link between flavonols, lycopene, vitamins C or B2, glutamate, calcium or phytoestrogens and ALS risk.
"A high intake of PUFAs and vitamin E is associated with a 50 to 60 percent decreased risk of developing ALS, and these nutrients appear to act synergistically," the authors conclude.
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