Dr Daisy Crick looked at the role of omega-3 and omega-6 in the body as part of her PhD studies at the Medical Research Council (MRC) Integrative Epidemiology Unit at the University of Bristol and said the findings challenge commonly held views.
Daisy Crick 博士在布里斯托大学医学研究委员会 （MRC） 综合流行病学部门   攻读博士学位   时研究了 omega-3 和 omega-6 在体内的作用，并表示这些发现挑战了普遍持有的观点。

“We tend to regard omega-3 as anti-inflammatory and omega-6 as pro-inflammatory, but the relationship of these polyunsaturated fatty acids is more complex,’’ said Dr Crick, who is now at The University of Queensland’s Institute of Molecular Bioscience in Australia.
“我们倾向于认为 omega-3 具有抗炎作用，而 omega-6 具有促炎作用，但这些多不饱和脂肪酸之间的关系更为复杂，”现在在澳大利亚昆士兰   大学分子生物科学   研究所工作的 Crick 博士说。

“Surprisingly, we found omega-3 fats could increase certain markers of inflammation in the body”.
“令人惊讶的是，我们发现 omega-3 脂肪会增加体内某些炎症标志物”。

“This result was maintained even when we accounted for other possible influences such as triglycerides, a type of fat found in the blood, and low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol known as ‘bad’ cholesterol.’’
“即使我们考虑了其他可能的影响因素，例如甘油三酯（血液中的一种脂肪）和被称为'坏'胆固醇的低密度脂蛋白 （LDL） 胆固醇，这一结果也得以保持。”

The research used the University of Bristol’s Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children which collected data from people at birth through to adulthood over the past 30 years.
该研究使用了布里斯托 大学的雅芳父母和儿童  纵向研究，该研究收集了过去 30 年从出生到成年的数据。

Researchers measured inflammation using biomarkers in the blood and found higher levels of omega-3 fats – naturally occurring in oily fish and commonly taken in supplements for anti-inflammatory benefits – were actually associated with increased levels of inflammation.
研究人员使用血液中的生物标志物测量炎症，发现更高水平的 omega-3 脂肪——天然存在于油性鱼类中，通常用于补充剂中以获得抗炎作用——实际上与炎症水平增加有关。

Additionally, a larger omega-6-to-omega-3 ratio was also consistently associated with higher levels of inflammatory biomarkers found in the body. In other words, too much omega-6 relative to omega-3 may increase inflammation.
此外，较大的 omega-6 与 omega-3 比率也始终与体内发现的更高水平的炎症生物标志物相关。换句话说，相对于 omega-3 而言，过多的 omega-6 可能会增加炎症。

Dr Crick said the results were confirmed using another large dataset, the UK Biobank, which includes information from almost 500,000 people.
克里克博士说，这一结果得到了另一个大型数据集——英国生物银行的证实，该数据集包括来自近 500,000 人的信息。

The team then applied Mendelian randomisation, a scientific technique that uses genetics to help understand cause-and-effect relationships by mimicking a randomised control trial.
然后，该团队应用了孟德尔随机化，这是一种利用遗传学通过模拟随机对照试验来帮助理解因果关系的科学技术。

Again, they found omega-3 and omega-6 increased levels of some biomarkers of inflammation.
同样，他们发现 omega-3 和 omega-6 增加了一些炎症生物标志物的水平。

“The belief that omega-3 fats lower inflammation and mitigates the risk of non-communicable diseases has led to popular diets like the Mediterranean diet and the use of supplements,’’ Dr Crick said.
“相信 omega-3 脂肪可以降低炎症并降低非传染性疾病的风险，这导致了地中海饮食等流行的饮食和补充剂的使用，”克里克博士说。

“But the previously believed relationship that omega-3 reduces levels of inflammation, may not be always correct.
“但以前认为 omega-3 降低炎症水平的关系可能并不总是正确的。

“Our findings suggest that the dietary fatty acids and inflammation relationship is more complex than previously thought and it might be more useful to look at the balance (or ratio) between omega-6 and omega-3 in the diet.’’
“我们的研究结果表明，膳食脂肪酸和炎症的关系比以前认为的要复杂，查看饮食中 omega-6 和 omega-3 之间的平衡（或比例）可能更有用。”

Study senior author Dr Hannah Jones of the (MRC) Integrative Epidemiology Unit at the University of Bristol and senior author of the study, said the relationship between fatty acids and inflammation is complex and the findings may only tell part of the story.
该研究的资深作者 、 布里斯托大学 （MRC） 综合流行病学部门的 Hannah Jones 博士是该研究的资深作者，他说，脂肪酸和炎症之间的关系很复杂，研究结果可能只说明了部分情况。

“Although our findings show that omega-3 fats are associated with increases of some biomarkers of inflammation, they don’t rule out other potential beneficial effects of these fatty acids in the diet,’’ Dr Jones said.
“尽管我们的研究结果表明 omega-3 脂肪与一些炎症生物标志物的增加有关，但它们并不排除这些脂肪酸在饮食中的其他潜在有益影响，”琼斯博士说。

“Inflammation is complex, and further research using additional biomarkers is needed before drawing firm conclusions about dietary omega-3 fats.”
“炎症很复杂，在对膳食 omega-3 脂肪得出确切结论之前，需要使用额外的生物标志物进行进一步研究。”

Paper  纸

'The relationship between polyunsaturated fatty acids and inflammation: evidence from cohort and Mendelian randomization analyses' by Daisy C P Crick, Sarah L Halligan, George Davey Smith, Golam M Khandaker, Hannah J Jones in International Journal of Epidemiology [open access]
“多不饱和脂肪酸与炎症之间的关系：来自队列和孟德尔随机化分析的证据” ，作者 ：Daisy C P Crick、 Sarah L Halligan、 George Davey Smith、 Golam M Khandaker、 Hannah J Jones ，《  国际流行病学杂志 》[开放存取]