Experts call for daily fish oil targets
Wednesday August 5th, 2009
The evidence that fish oil and similar fats can boost human heart health is now "compelling", experts said yesterday.
The strength of the evidence for omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids - such as fish oil - led to experts calling for daily intake recommendations.
Dr Carl Lavie of Ochsner Medical Center, New Orleans, USA, and colleagues say there is mounting evidence that omega-3 fatty acids from fish or fish oil supplements not only help prevent heart disease, but also reduce the rate of cardiac events and prevent death among patients with existing heart disease.
Their findings were reported in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology yesterday.
"The most compelling evidence comes from four controlled trials of nearly 40,000 participants," they explain. In the trials, volunteers who took the omega-3 fatty acids eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) with or without docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) had lower rates of heart disease.
"The target EPA plus DHA consumption should be at least 500mg per day for individuals without underlying overt cardiovascular disease, and at least 800 to 1,000mg per day for individuals with known coronary heart disease and heart failure," they write.
Dr Lavie commented: "This isn't just hype; we now have tremendous and compelling evidence from very large studies, some dating back 20 and 30 years, that demonstrate the protective benefits of omega-3 fish oil in multiple aspects of preventive cardiology.
"If we translate this finding, it means that we only need to treat 56 patients for four years to prevent one death," he said. "And we are talking about a very safe and relatively inexpensive therapy. Patients should talk with their doctors about whether a fish oil supplement is needed."
Foods that are rich in omega-3s include oily fish like salmon, sardines, trout, herring, and oysters.
Lavie, C. J. et al. Omega-3 Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids and Cardiovascular Diseases. The Journal of the American College of Cardiology, Vol 54, August 11, 2009, pp. 585-94.
Tags: Heart Health | North America | Nutrition & Healthy Eating
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