Tuesday, August 25, 2009

What Is The Fish Oil Heart Disease Link?

By Peter Bertonich

No doubt exists now that there is a clear link between intake of Omega 3 fats found in fish oil and preventing some heart disease problems.

Even the American Heart Association recognizes the fish oil heart disease prevention link. And they list the heart health benefits on their websites.

And of course that's all good for your heart. It helps prevent heart related problems, and keep your heart healthier than it would otherwise be. It shows a clear fish oil heart disease prevention link.

But what about people who already have heart problems? Is there a fish oil heart disease treatment link? Can fish oil help treat existing heart problems?

The Journal of the American College of Cardiology has just published a study combining the results of 4 different studies of around 40000 people. And they show a clear Omega 3 heart disease link, showing that more fish oils and Omega 3 oils can indeed help in treatment for existing heart problems.

This is also recognized by the AHA, they recommend minimum levels of Omega 3 dietary intake on their website, and for those people with existing heart problems the minimum level is double that recommended for people with no preexisting, or known, cardio vascular problems.

The results are on the website of the Journal of the American College of Cardiology and are summarized as:

"Omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid therapy continues to show great promise in primary and, particularly in secondary prevention of cardiovascular (CV) diseases. The most compelling evidence for CV benefits of -3 PUFA comes from 4 controlled trials of nearly 40,000 participants randomized to receive eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) with or without docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) in studies of patients in primary prevention, after myocardial infarction, and most recently, with heart failure."

So clearly there is a fish oil heart disease link including for the treatment of existing cardio vascular disease.

Anyone with pre existing cardio vascular problems should, however, consult a doctor before starting any supplements.

For those who are beginning to look for good Omega 3 supplements its worth reading my website where I have an article about this.

And for the amount to take? The study concludes recommending 500 mg per day for those with normal health, and 800 to 1000 mg per day for those with known cardio vascular issues. But there is no conclusion as to the relative amounts of DHA to EPA.

And the AHA make similar recommendations on their website.

So if you're getting serious about your heart health, both present and future, you may well find that taking some fish oil supplements daily could be one of the best things you could do. Your life may depend on it.

Find out more about Omega 3 fish oil supplements on my website.

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