Fish oil can be harmful for our brain – New study reveals unusual findings

Fish oil has long been praised as a brain-boosting element and a healthy nutrient, but new research suggests the story may be more complicated.

It follows a study where scientists found that in people with repeated mild head injuries, a key omega-3 fatty acid in fish oil—EPA—may actually interfere with the brain’s ability to repair itself.

Instead of helping recovery, it appears to weaken blood vessel stability, disrupt healing signals, and even contribute to harmful protein buildup linked to cognitive decline.

A new study led by the Medical University of South Carolina by neuroscientist Onder Albayram, a member of the National Trauma Society Committee, and his team focused on the biological processes involved in repairing blood vessels in the brain after injury.

The researchers informed Interest in omega-3 fatty acids, the key components of fish oil, has been growing rapidly.

According to Fortune Business Insights, these supplements are now appearing not only in capsules but also in drinks, dairy alternatives, and snack products.

That surge in popularity does not surprise Albayram. "Fish oil supplements are everywhere, and people take them for a range of reasons, often without a clear understanding of their long-term effects," he said.

"But in terms of neuroscience, we still don't know whether the brain has resilience or resistance to this supplement. That's why ours is the first such study in the field."

Researchers did some model research and found that higher levels of EPA in the brain were associated with weaker repair after injury.

In simple terms, this means that changes in how cells use energy may reduce the brain's ability to recover under certain conditions, and this vulnerability appears to be linked to the buildup of eicosapentaenoic acid, or EPA, one of the main omega-3 fatty acids found in fish oil.

Additionally, the research was originally published in Journal Eicosapentaenoic acid reprograms cerebrovascular metabolism and impairs repair after brain injury, with relevance to chronic traumatic encephalopathy.