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Omega-3 Fish oils: Substantial Health Benefits

Narinder Duggal, MD, FRCPC

Overview:

Dietary fat plays an important role in our health. We all need some fats in our diet. The recommended amount of dietary fat varies from person to person. Broadly, there are two types of fats (fatty acids); saturated and unsaturated. Saturated fat, generally solid at room temperature, is associated with increased blood cholesterol. Unsaturated fat, including monounsaturated and polyunsaturated is usually liquid at room temperature.

Polyunsaturated fats can have a beneficial effect on human health when consumed in moderation and when used to replace saturated fats.¹ They include essential fatty acids that the body needs but can’t produce itself, such as omega-6 and omega-3 fatty acids. The parent fatty acid of the omega-6 series is linoleic acid (LA), and the parent fatty acid of the omega-3 series is alpha linoleic acid (ALA).

It has been estimated that the ratio of omega-6 to omega-3 fatty acids in the diet of early humans was 1:1, but the ratio in the typical Western diet is now almost 10:1 due to increased use of vegetable oils rich in LA.² This imbalance is thought to contribute to the inflammation that increases the risk of developing diseases like type 2 diabetes and heart disease. Omega-3 fatty acids help reduce inflammation, and most omega-6 fatty acids tend to promote inflammation.³

Health Benefits:

Cardiovascular Health

A high dietary intake of omega-3 fish oil has been strongly linked to lower rates of cardiovascular disease in a number of studies. Recent studies showed that poly unsaturated fatty acids supplementation decrease the risk of arrhythmia, lower triglyceride levels and slow the growth rate of fatty plaque in the arteries.⁴ Evidence also suggests that omega-3 fatty acids are able to slightly, but significantly improve arterial hypertension.⁵ Researchers at  Harvard School of Public Health have concluded that an adequate amount of omega-3 fatty acids along with a healthy diet can offer significant protection against coronary heart disease.⁶ In an Italian clinical trial, long term use of omega-3 fatty acids (1g daily) was attributable to a decrease in risk for cardiovascular death.⁷

Many studies have demonstrated a positive association between cellular content of omega-3 fatty acids and heart rate variability (HRV). Supplementation with omega-3 fatty acids seems to increase HRV and thereby decreasing the risk of arrhythmic events and sudden cardiac death.^8-10 Omega-3 index (levels of omega-3 fatty acids in red blood cells) is inversely associated with risk of death due to coronary heart disease. An omega-3 index of at least 8% is associated with the greatest cardioprotection, whereas an index of 4% or below is associated with the least cardioprotection.¹¹

Diabetes

Supplementation with omega -3 fish oils also has a protective vascular effect in type-2 diabetes.  A recent study has shown that six weeks of supplementation with omega-3 fatty acids in subjects with type 2 diabetes reduced the postprandial (after consuming food) vascular damage at both macrovascular (related to large blood vessels as coronary arteries and aorta) and microvascular (related to finer blood vessels as capillaries involved in Diabetic retinopathy and nephropathy) levels.¹² An intervention study in 2005, in which the participants were stressed to consume foods rich in omega-3 fish-oil resulted in significant reductions in total cholesterol plasma concentrations, LDL cholesterol, fasting glucose, diastolic blood pressure and improved glucose tolerance without loss of body weight.¹³

Lowering triglyceride levels  

In addition, lowering triglyceride levels is another property of omega-3 fatty acids.¹⁴ A clinical trial in adult patients with very high triglycerides , more than 500 mg/dL (normal levels less than 150 mg/dl) showed that four 1g capsules of prescription omega-3 fatty acids effectively decreased triglyceride levels by up to 45%, and was well tolerated.¹⁵ Another study, in patients with coronary heart disease and elevated triglycerides, demonstrated a significant decrease in serum triglycerides by 20-30% and in VLDL (very low density lipoprotein) cholesterol by 30-40% after one year routine supplementation of omega-3 fatty acids.¹⁶

Nervous system

The use of omega-3 fatty acid supplements during childhood plays an important role in neurodevelopment.¹⁷ Controlled trials have also shown that supplementation with omega-3 fatty acids, docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) may help in the management of childhood psychiatric disorders. The omega-3 fatty acid, DHA is a major constituent of neuronal membranes and, along with the other omega-3 fatty acids such as EPA, has been shown to have a wide variety of beneficial effects on neuronal functioning,¹⁸ inflammation, oxidation and cell death as well as the development of the Alzheimer's disease.¹⁹Omega-3 fatty acids supplements may protect against depression whereas a lack of omega-3 has been linked to depression.²⁰ Omega-3 fatty acids have been noted to exhibit mood-stabilizing properties in bipolar disorder.²¹

Cancer Prevention

There is substantial evidence that an intake of omega-3 fish-oil products can prevent some types of cancer. Dietary intervention with omega-3 fatty acids has been postulated to be an alternative way to prevent liver cancer progression and metastasis.²² Treatment with omega-3 fatty acid supplements also led to a decrease in invasion of breast cancer cells.²³ Whereas, low intake of omega-3 fatty acids has been associated with high risk of colorectal cancer.²⁴

Autoimmune disease prevention

The potential anti-inflammatory effect of omega-3 fatty acids has been shown in many auto-immune disorders such as rheumatoid arthritis,²⁵ inflammatory bowel disease and multiple sclerosis.²⁶

Based on recognized health improvements brought about by omega-3 fatty acids, recommendations have been made to increase their intake. Generally, a diet high in fish can supply humans with complex nutrients including the omega-3 fatty acids. Unfortunately, fish can contain highly toxic chemicals including mercury.²⁷ EPACOR, the highly concentrated omega-3 fatty acid productfrom Synergy Therapeutics RX can help you achieve optimal omega-3 index and obtain the associated health benefits. Visit our products page to purchase EPACOR today.

References:

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2.    http://www.nwhealth.edu/healthyU/eatWell/omegas.html. (Open link)

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16.    Durrington PN, Bhatnagar D, Mackness MI, et al. An omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid concentrate administered for one year decreased triglycerides in simvastatin treated patients with coronary heart disease and persisting hypertriglyceridaemia. Heart 2001;85(5):544-8. (PUBMED Abstract)

17.    Ryan AS, Astwood JD, Gautier S, et al. Effects of long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acid supplementation on neurodevelopment in childhood: A review of human studies. Prostaglandins Leukot Essent Fatty Acids. (PUBMED Abstract)

18.    Heinrichs SC. Dietary omega-3 fatty acid supplementation for optimizing neuronal structure and function. Mol Nutr Food Res. (PUBMED Abstract)

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