Scientists from the University of Louisiana have found that a component of fish oil could help to protect brain tissue and promote stroke recovery.

Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) is an omega-3 fatty acid that is found in fish oils. Nicolas Bazan, the study’s lead investigator, said that the research shows the “significant impact of omega-3 essential fatty acids on stroke.”

For the study, the scientists administered DHA to patients after the onset of stroke. As a result, the DHA reduced inflammation and also helped the subjects’ neurobehavioral recovery.

The researchers noted that the DHA saved brain tissue that would have otherwise been damaged by stroke.

Bazan said that while there is no definitive cure for stroke, this research brings hope that DHA may help to someday combat this problem “and other debilitating neurodegenerative disease.”

Each year, about 795,000 people in the United States have a stroke and approximately 85 percent are ischemic, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). When an ischemic stroke occurs, it causes damage to the tissue at the site of where blood flow to the brain was blocked. As a result, everyday skills may be lost, including how to eat and knowing how to get dressed.