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… continued from page 227
‘Fish oil lowers heart rate, blood pressure and triglycerides
(at high dosages), increases adiponectin, improves endothelial
function, and in some studies improves oxygen consumption
in myocardium. If there is benefit from fish, it’s from the
omega-3s, and all in all the evidence supports this,’ but
because the evidence is primarily observational, it can only
show linkage and cannot prove causation, he explains.
Given the potential benefit and limited risk: ‘I think
everyone should aim to eat two servings of fish each week,
preferentially oily fish. That’s very solid,’ says Mozaffarian,
who is also a cardiologist and dean of the Gerald J and
Dorothy R Friedman School of Nutrition Science and
Policy, Boston, Massachusetts. The investigators did not have
adequate data to compare the associations between outcomes
and a diet with oily fish versus less oily fish.
For people who either can’t consume two fish meals a
week or want to ensure their omega-3 intake is adequate, ‘it’s
very reasonable for the average person to take one [over-the-
counter] fish oil capsule a day,’ Mozaffarian adds.
He acknowledges that several studies of fish-oil
supplements failed to show benefit, but several others have.
‘It’s a confusing field, but the evidence supports benefit from
omega-3s,’ he concludes.
He discounts the new finding that only people with
established CVD or who are at high risk benefit. ‘’m not sure
we should make too much of this, because many prior studies
showed a lower CVD risk in fish-eating people without
prevalent CVD,’ he said. The new study ‘provides important
information, given its worldwide breadth,’ he added.
The new report used data regarding 191 558 people
enrolled prospectively in any of four studies. The average age
of the participants was 54 years, and 52% were women.
During follow up, death from any cause occurred in 6%
of those without CVD or CVD risk and in 13% of those
with these factors. Major CVD events occurred in 5 and
17% of these two subgroups, respectively. To calculate the
relative risks between those who ate fish and those who did
not, the investigators used standard multivariate adjustment
for potential confounders and adjusted for several dietary
variables, Mente says.
Source:
MedicalBrief
2021