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As an excellent source of heart-healthy omega-3 fatty acids, daily fish oil supplements are a popular way to prevent the risk of cardiovascular disease.
about 20% of adults over 60 Americans frequently use these products to support heart health.
However, a new study suggests that regularly taking fish oil supplements may increase, rather than reduce, the risk of first stroke and atrial fibrillation, even in people with good cardiovascular health.
atrial fibrillationCardiac arrhythmia, also known as AFib or AF, is a type of irregular heartbeat or heartbeat that is often described as a pounding or thumping in the chest.
“You can see that the headline for this study is ‘Fish oil supplements: is it time to throw them out or not?'” the cardiologist said. Dr. Andrew Freemandirector of cardiovascular prevention and health at National Jewish Health in Denver.
“I say that because commercially available fish oil is rarely recommended and is not listed in any professional medical association guidelines, yet most people consume it.” said Freeman, who was not involved in the study.
The study analyzed data from more than 415,000 people aged 40 to 69 who took part in the UK Biobank, a longitudinal study of people’s health in the UK. Nearly one-third of these people, who were followed for an average of 12 years, said they regularly used fish oil supplements.
People without heart problems who regularly take fish oil supplements have a 13% increased risk of developing atrial fibrillation and a 5% increased risk of having a stroke, according to a study published Tuesday in the same journal. He says he will. BMJ Medicine.
Freeman said commercially available fish oils lack purity and consistency, as well as potential contaminants such as mercury and heavy metals found in fish.
“Furthermore, research over the past decade has not yielded very positive results for commercially available fish oils,” he added. “Fish oil either had no effect or in some cases could harm things like stroke and atrial fibrillation. So it’s not new.”
In fact, a new study found that people who already had heart disease at the start of the study had a 15% lower risk of progressing from atrial fibrillation to a heart attack, and from heart failure to death, if they had regular heart disease. It was found that there was a 9% lower risk of Uses fish oil.
Instead, prescription versions of fish oils such as Vasepa and Lovaza are used to address risk factors such as high triglycerides, a type of fat in the blood, in people at risk for cardiovascular disease, Freeman said. It is said that there is.
“But even with prescription-strength, refined fish oil, there is still a risk of atrial fibrillation and possibly stroke, so doctors are cautious about that,” Freeman said.
“Overall, I would say that the days of people just going to the store and buying a bucket of fish oil pills to stay healthy should be over. But for people who are already sick, fish oil is It may still play a role.”
Sashirin Pamai/iStockphoto/Getty Images/File
Fish oil may be effective for certain heart conditions, but experts say it should only be taken in consultation with a doctor.
When it comes to fish oil, “the devil is in the details,” says Dr. Richard Isaacson, director of research at the Neurodegenerative Disease Research Institute in Boca Raton, Florida, and an Alzheimer’s prevention neurologist. He was not involved in the study.
“First, we recommend testing your omega-3 fatty acid levels. There are accurate finger stick tests that you can buy online. Then you should continue testing. If you don’t need fish oil, you don’t want to take it. “Sho,” he said.
Isaacson recommends getting omega-3 fatty acids from food, saying sardines and wild-caught salmon are the best sources because they’re high in these healthy unsaturated fats and low in mercury. There is. Farmed salmon is not the best option because the water used for farming contains impurities, he said.
Lake trout, mackerel, herring and albacore tuna are also good sources, he said. However, because large fish such as tuna are high in mercury, he recommends consuming albacore tuna no more than twice a week.
Besides fish, algae and seaweed are also good sources of omega-3s. Chia seeds, edamame (soybeans), flaxseed, hemp seeds, and walnuts are also plant-based options high in omega-3s. However, the fatty acids are in a different form than those found in fish. the study They found that plant-based omega-3s may be less easily metabolized in people with higher levels of omega-6s, another type of unsaturated fat found primarily in vegetable oils.
According to experts, prescription omega-3 fatty acids are superior to commercial products in terms of their purity and quality. However, prescribed supplements can be expensive. For those looking to purchase omega-3s over the counter, Isaacson offers the following tips to his patients.
First, the freshness of the fish oil is important, he said, adding that “buying it online or from a retail store like Amazon or Costco is not the best idea.”
“I recommend buying from a few companies you trust and from their websites,” Isaacson says. “There is a huge difference in quality between fish oil that is stored in a hot warehouse and close to its expiry date, and fish oil that is recently produced, shipped directly from a company, and stored in your home refrigerator.”
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration monitors the supplement industry to ensure that each vitamin and mineral actually contains what it says on the label, and that ingredients contain bacteria, heavy metals, pesticides, plastic residue, and It is not tested for contamination with other impurities.
However, some companies are stepping into that role by testing different supplements and some medications, so look for the supplement’s label before you buy.non-profit organization United States PharmacopoeiaExperts say USP sets the most widely accepted standards for supplements, but ConsumerLab.com and NSF International We also perform third-party testing.
