Mounting evidence of fish body oil benefit

United Press International

8/4/2009

NEW ORLEANS, Aug 4, 2009 (UPI via COMTEX) -- Omega-3 fatty acids may reduce the incidence of cardiac events and mortality in patients with existing heart disease, U.S. researchers said.

"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," lead author Dr. Carl Lavie, medical director of Cardiac Rehabilitation and Prevention, Ochsner Medical Center in New Orleans, said in a statement.

"The strongest evidence of a cardioprotective effect of omega-3s appears in patients with established cardiovascular disease and following a heart attack with up to a 30 percent reduction in cardiovascular-related death."

Dietary intake of fish oil can also decrease the risk of atherosclerosis, arrhythmias, heart attack, sudden cardiac death and even health failure, Lavie said.

The review, published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology, said based on the findings, the study authors recommend that healthy individuals should consume 500 mg daily of omega-3 fish oil containing docosahexaenoic acid and eicosapentaenoic acid and people with known heart disease or heart failure aim for at least 800 to 1,000 mg daily.

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