Fish oil may reduce the risk of heart attack and improve overall
heart health. Researchers at the Vet. Affairs Medical Center
report that dha and epa, major components of fish oil, offer
substantial protection against coronary heart disease. Their
study involved over 6,000 middle-aged men. Researchers working
at the Veterans Affairs Medical Center state that DPA and DHA,
primary components of fish oil, provide substantial protection
against coronary heart disease.
This study involved more tha six
thousand middle-aged men who had samples of their blood taken
between 1973 and 1976. During the next seven years, 94 of these
men had a heart attack or died suddenly due to heart disease.
The 94 men were matched with 94 healthy men and the fatty acid
profile of their blood samples compared. The researchers
discovered that the 94 men with heart disease tended to have a
higher serum level of the saturated fatty acid palmitic acid and
stated that a high level of this acid increases the risk of CHD
by 68 percent.
Palmitic acid is the main saturated fatty acid in
most diets. This acid is known to cause an increase in both
total cholesterol and low-density cholesterol levels; the
researchers, however, found that the detrimental effect of a
high intake of palmitic acid persisted even after allowing for
its cholesterol- increasing effect.
The researchers also determined that men with a higher blood level of the Omega-3
unsaturated fatty acids, docosapentaenoic acid and
docosahexaenoic acid had an almost 50 percent lower risk of
developing heart disease than did men with lower levels.
Furthermore, the researchers found that men with CHD tended to
have a higher serum level of Omega-6 fatty acids derived from
linoleic acid. Fish Oil may reduce heart attack fatalities by
balancing certain electrical rhythms in the heart, thus
preventing blood clots from forming.
George Billman, professor
of physiology at the Ohio State Univ., says that omega-3 fatty
acids in fish oil make the tissues in the muscles of the heart
less susceptible to damage caused by a lack of blood flow. “It
looks like omega-3 fatty acids protect against the changes
induced by ischemia,” said Billman. Billman, along with
researchers at the Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard
University Medical School, published the results of the study in
a recent issue of the journal 'Circulation'.
The omega-3 fatty
acids in the study seemed to do the work of anti-arrhythmic
drugs. This work was funded by the American Heart Association,
Ohio Valley Affiliate, and the National Institute of Diabetes
and Digestive and Kidney Diseases of the National Institutes of
Health. Dr. Barry Sears, a leading authority in the field of
drug delivery systems and dietary control of hormonal response,
states that Research is increasingly emphasizing the broad
benefits of high-grade fish oil.
About the author:
Aaron Wilmont is an author and researcher regarding health
issues. To find out more about Fish Oil, go to
http://www.dr-sears-fishoil.com/
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