15th June 1999

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TRY THE CAVEMAN DIET

Did our stone age ancestors eat a healthier diet than we do? Are lethal present day killers, like coronary heart disease, made more common because we have moved away from the diet of our primitive forebears?

And is there more truth than meets the eye in the old wives' tale that eating plenty of fish makes children brainy?

These are some of the questions that will be addressed by world experts on diet and health at a conference to be held in the University of Ulster, Coleraine this week (June 17-18).

Focusing on issues in nutrition and toxicology, the conference brings to Northern Ireland top ranking European, American and Australian research scientists.

In the past, nutrition research has centred on positive aspects of diet, while toxicology emphasised the potential negative effects on human health. Now, they are coming together to build a new, unified field of scientific endeavour aimed at ensuring the safety of the human food chain.

Conference organiser is Professor Sean Strain, who said: "There may be more truth than we had suspected in the old wives' tale that eating fish makes children brainy."

"Speakers at our conference will suggest that high levels of fish consumption by our primate ancestors was responsible for the rapid development of the human brain.

"The latest research indicates that fish eating can help prevent toxic chemicals from damaging our brains.

"For example, it's known that large ocean fish, like tuna, can accumulate poisonous metals such as mercury in their bodies.

"But studies among people in the Seychelles who eat large quantities of these ocean-going fish indicate that, although mercury can damage the brain, the people studied show no adverse effects - and indeed appear to benefit, suggesting that the nutrients in the fish more than compensate for any damaging effects of the mercury."

This is the first of three planned conferences, which will consolidate UU's position as a world class centre of excellence in diet and health research.

-ENDS-

Notes for editors:

* The conference has received support from the IRTU, HJ Heinz Ltd, and the US National Institute of Health.

* Press and e-media are invited to attend. Professor Strain is available for interview

For further information, please contact:

Press Office Department of Communication and Development
Telephone: 028 9036 6178
Email: pressoffice@ulster.ac.uk