Omega-3 fatty acid supplements may not boost heart health like doctors once thought
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(CBS News) Omega-3 fatty acid supplements like fish oil pills are taken by many to boost heart health, but new research suggests the pills aren't having their intended effects.
The study of nearly 70,000 people found taking omega-3 fatty acid supplements did not reduce a person's risk for heart attack, stroke, cardiac or sudden death or death from any cause.
Taking omega-3 supplements may provide no mental or cognitive benefit
Watch: Fish and your brain: Benefits of omega-3 fatty acids
Eating fish no help for heart? What new study says
Previous research has shown that omega-3 pills may be effective in staving off major heart problems because of the supplement's ability to lower triglyceride levels (fat in the blood), lower blood pressure, prevent against dangerous arrhythmias and decrease clotting.
According to the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine, the capsules may also slow the progression of atherosclerosis (hardening of arteries) and reduce the risk of heart attack, stroke and death among people with heart disease.<
The researchers also say that treatment guidelines from major medical societies recommend their use - either as supplements or through the foods they eat (such as fatty fish) - for patients after a heart attack. The American Heart Association recommends eating fatty fish at least twice a week for cardiovascular benefits and says people may want to discuss taking supplements with their doctor if they don't get enough omega-3 fatty acids from their diets.
For the study, led by Dr. Evangelos C. Rizos, a researcher at the University Hospital of Ioannina in Greece reviewed 20 rigorous trials that involved omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids. Of the large study pool, the researchers identified 1,837 heart attacks, 1,490 strokes, 3,993 heart-related deaths, 1,150 sudden deaths and 7,044 deaths.
The researchers found that people taking the supplements showed no statistically significant risk reduction when it came to these areas.
"Our findings do not justify the use of omega-3 as a structured intervention in everyday clinical practice or through dietary supplementation," the authors said.
Dr. David A. Friedman, chief of heart failure services at North Shore-LIJ Plainview Hospital in Plainview, N.Y. aptly chose to call the results "disheartening" in an interview with WebMD, and added, "It may be that food sources of omega-3, rather than supplements, are a better choice."
USA Today reports that Americans spent more than $1 billion on fish oil supplements in 2011.
Duffy MacKay, vice president for scientific and regulatory affairs at the industry trade group the Council for Responsible Nutrition, told USA Today his group disputed the findings, noting that several of the studies the researchers reviewed included people who were already sick so the findings may not apply to disease prevention.
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In layman's terms, high Omega-3 oils come from coldwater fish and arctic mammals since Omega-3 oils are very polyunsaturated and those double bond 'kinks' make it so they cannot pack together tightly like saturated and some trans fats. Therefore they will remain liquid at very cold temperatures and without these fats the arctic fish and mammals would die since the cells in their body would solidify (Try putting Omega-3 oil in the freezer!). Tropical fish have very low Omega-3 content because they don't need it to keep their cells liquid and flexible due to temperature.
In the blood stream (your body's highway for transporting energy as glucose, oxygen, and other nutrients), saturated and trans fats being more linear stack together to become solid at far lower temperatures (ie. butter) and this forms plaque in your arteries that restrict the 'lanes' of your bloodstream highway forcing your heart to pump harder, raising blood pressure and a host of other symptoms. When a constant flow of Omega-3 fatty acids are circulating in your blood with much lower melting points, these will help to dissolve the built up plaque caused from the saturated and trans fats, thereby opening up your bloodstream highway to 'full lanes'. The effects for your brain are the same, and I believe have aided me in having a good memory. It just makes no sense to me, how Omega-3 oils would have no positive effect on your body.
But as far as consumers and physicians are concerned, it's the outcomes, not the physiologic hypothesis, that matters.
"We strongly believe this meta-analysis is a limited depiction of the benefits of omega-3 fatty acids on cardiovascular health. For example, the authors admit their results don't take into account that more pharmaceuticals are being prescribed for heart disease, which can camouflage the cardiovascular benefit of omega-3s.
Consumers should not be misled by this article. There is a significant amount of evidence showing the positive effects omega-3 fatty acids have on cardiovascular disease. This is based on epidemiological and observational studies as well as clinical trials looking at a variety of cardiovascular disease outcomes. The American Heart Association recommends a diet high in omega-3s and supplementation for those who cannot get enough from their diet.
NPA also recommends consumers get their nutrients from a well-balanced diet, but unfortunately, most don't. Supplementation is a safe and effective way for consumers to be sure they gain the nutrients essential to living a healthy lifestyle."
Animal based omega-3 fats are considered essential because they cannot be synthesized in appropriate quantities by your body and must be supplied through your diet.
www.cleansemart.com/omega-3-omega-3-fish-oil-omega-3-supplements-fish-oil-omega-3.html
The introduction of high-quality, easily digested nutrients from seafood into the human diet coincided with the rapid expansion of grey matter in the cerebral cortex -- a defining characteristic of the modern human brain.
The DHA molecule has unique structural properties that provide optimal conditions for a wide range of cell membrane functions, and grey matter is a particularly membrane-rich tissue.
There's no doubt you need omega-3 fat for proper brain function. In fact, mounting evidence suggests that deficiency in this essential fat may lead to brain degeneration. According to a recent article published in the journal Nutrients
I take the Omega 3s & they do make a huge difference in my daily heart activity..all around it is helpful..I just wish that our Medicare D Insurance companies would readily acknowledge that as we age we need this and vitamin D & probably Flax for our hearts & eyes & vital organs & cover these when a physician prescribes them..Prevention is worth a pound of millions of dollars spent when our organs falter!!
Individual studies are just that, studies done by one group. Now its news, tomorrow another group will say something else. If something works for you. stick with it....one size does not fit all.