High intakes of omega-3 fatty acids may reduce the risk of obesity-related chronic diseases such as diabetes and heart disease, according to new findings from a study with Alaskan Eskimos.

Yup’ik Eskimos, the most famous indigenous people of the US’ 49th State, have similar obesity rates to the lower 48 states, but the incidence of type-2 diabetes is only 3.3 percent, compared with 7.7 percent nationally.

According to researchers from the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center and the University of Alaska-Fairbanks, this apparent reduction in diabetes risk is linked to the observation that the Eskimos’ average consumption of omega-3s from fish is 20 times more than people in the lower 48 states.