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Omega-3 Fish Oil Supplements May Not Offer Heart Benefits After All
Medical News Today
Academic Journal
Main Category: Cardiovascular / Cardiology
Also Included In: Nutrition / Diet
Article Date: 12 Sep 2012 – 4:00 PDT
A review of 20 studies covering nearly 70,000 participants finds no statistically
significant evidence that supplementation with omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids
(PUFAs), commonly referred to as fish oil supplements, is linked to a lower risk of
heart attack, stroke, or premature death.
However, in their attempt to clarify the recent controversy surrounding the use of omega3 supplements, the authors do not rule out the possibility that certain groups may benefit,
and call for future studies to look more closely at this. Evangelos Rizos, of the University
Hospital of Ioannina, Ioannina, Greece, and colleagues write about their findings in the
12 September issue of JAMA.
Omega-3 PUFAs are considered essential for healthy development of the heart and other
parts of the body, and food sources rich in these include nuts and seeds, and oily fish such
as salmon, mackerel, herring and sardines. As supplements they are typically given in the
form of fish oil.
Although it is not clear how they help the heart and circulation, there are suggestions
omega-3 PUFAs lower triglyceride levels, prevent serious arrythmias, reduce the
clumping of platelets, and lower blood pressure.
However, the authors write that: "Considerable controversy exists regarding the
association of omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) and major cardiovascular
end points."
Although some randomized studies suggest omega-3 PUFAs prevent heart disease, others
refute this, they explain, noting also that many medical and health societies support their
use for patients after heart attack (MI, myocardial infarction), either as supplements or
through dietary advice.
Regulatory authorities also appear to have different views. The US Food and Drug
Administration (FDA) has approved the use of omega-3 PUFAs only for lowering
triglycerides in patients with overt hypertriglyceridemia, while some, but not all,
European regulators have approved them for reducing cardiovascular risk.
"The controversy stemming from the varying labeling indications causes confusion
in everyday clinical practice about whether to use these agents for cardiovascular
protection," write Rizos and colleagues.
Thus, in an attempt to clarify the situation, they carried out a large-scale statistical review
of the available evidence from randomized controlled studies, looking at the link between
omega-3 PUFAs and major cardiovascular outcomes such as stroke and heart attacks, and
also premature death.
From a search of the well-known databases, they found 3,635 studies, from which 20
matched their criteria. These provided data for a pooled analysis on 68,680 randomized
patients, and events that included 7,044 deaths, 3,993 cardiac deaths, 1,150 sudden
deaths, 1,837 heart attacks, and 1,490 strokes.
Taking all the included supplement studies together, the researchers found no
significant association between use of omega-3 PUFAs and all-cause mortality,
cardiac death, sudden death, heart attack (MI), and stroke.
They conclude: "… omega-3 PUFAs are not statistically significantly associated with
major cardiovascular outcomes across various patient populations."
They suggest their findings "do not justify the use of omega-3 as a structured
intervention in everyday clinical practice or guidelines supporting dietary omega-3
PUFA administration."
However, they also note that as scientists continue to do more randomized studies in this
field, it would be useful to do some that look more closely at how these supplements
might benefit individual risk groups, and use more refined measures such as dose,
adherence and baseline intake.
In other words, while looking at all the evidence as a whole does not appear to support
the idea that omega-3 PUFA supplements benefit the heart, this broad-brush picture
could be missing details: there may be certain groups that do benefit, and this may also
depend on factors such as the supplement dose and how long they take it for.
Response from the National Lipid Association
In comments made to Medical News Today, the National Lipid Association have said that
they do not necessarily agree with the conclusions reached by the review:
"In this study, the authors used P value of 0.006 corrected for multiple comparisons
without clear details or citation for the rationale. If the authors had used the standard
criterion (P value of 0.05) or would have been more transparent as to why they used the
stricter criterion, then the conclusion would have been easier to interpret. The NLA
believes that this review is not conclusive yet we remain open to further looks at this
challenging question.
The National Lipid Association continues to believe that the totality of published
evidence supports the use of both fish and fish oil supplementation to reduce the risk for
cardiovascular disease and that this paper does not alter that perspective. As always,
patients should consult with their health care provider before stopping or starting any
medication or dietary supplement."
Other studies on fish oils
Some other recent individual studies, published in Medical News Today, have also
concluded that fish oils do not appear to provide some of the benefits people had
previously taken for granted.
Researchers from the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine found that taking
omega-3 fish oil supplements appears not to protect older people from cognitive decline.
In contrast, a study published on September 10th found that DHA intake may help
improve reading and behavior in healthy but underperforming children. DHA is an
omega-3 fatty acid. You can look up other studies related to omega-3 fish oils in our
archive.
Written by Catharine Paddock PhD
Article updated: 24 September 2012.
Copyright: Medical News Today