Diet
1. The Mediterranean diet is thought to be beneficial for health. In particular omega 3 fatty acids have been identified in fish as a component of the Mediterranean diet that affects markers of metabolic health. What are the ‘active’ ingredients in fish oil? How does fish oil affect metabolism? Use studies to support your answers. The figure below is taken from Logan and Spriet (2015). Do these results support the idea that fish oil can affect metabolism beneficially? If so, how? Finally, is there evidence to suggest that athletes interested in improving their performance should supplement their diet with fish oil?
d
Oxygen uptake measures at rest and during exercise at baseline (time 1 (T1); 0 wk), and after 6 (T2) and 12 wk (T3) of placebo (olive oil) or fish oil supplementation.
Marks will be awarded for:
Including all of the points asked for in the question. Ie answer the question!
Please don’t see a key word and write all you know on a topic. Think about what the question is asking and be direct. These questions are set to require you to prioritise the information you believe is important to be able to answer the question.
Justify your answer with relevant studies; discuss the weight of evidence if appropriate, including opposing studies (if relevant) but drawing a logical conclusion where this is possible.
Marks will also be awarded for Flow and style, introduce the topic, give background suitable to allow understanding. Discuss and draw comparisons where appropriate, and conclude.
Marking will be broken down as follows:
Introduction /5
Mechanisms, rationale and justification /20
Conclusions /5
Total /30.
1. The Mediterranean diet is thought to be beneficial for health. In particular omega 3 fatty acids have been
identified in fish as a component of the Mediterranean diet that affects markers of metabolic health. What are
the ‘active’ ingredients in fish oil? How does fish oil affect metabolism? Use studies to support your
answers. The figure below is taken from Logan and Spriet (2015). Do these results support the idea that fish
oil can affect metabolism beneficially? If so, how? Finally, is there evidence to suggest that athletes
interested in improving their performance should supplement their diet with fish oil?