Health & Medicine
Omega-3 Fatty Acids Reduces Risks Of Fatal Heart Attacks, Study Reveals
Johnson D
First Posted: Jun 29, 2016 08:33 AM EDT
Omega-3 fatty acids found in fish, especially the fatty ones like salmon, and alpha-linolenic acid (ALA) which is known as the plant-based omega-3 fatty acid can be found in walnuts, canola oil, and some seeds and nuts. A new study revealed that plant-based and seafood-based omega-3 fatty acids were found to be "moderately related" to a reduced risk of dying from heart attacks.
Medical News Today reported that there are about 735,000 people in the United States have a heart attack every year. This usually happens when an area of the heart does not receive enough oxygenated blood. However, there are other studies that questioned the benefits the heart gets from omega-3s, with some even saying that fish supplements, which is a major source of the fatty acids, do not decrease the risk of heart-related situations.
Omega-3s are important fatty acids that the body needs for specific functions, like blood clotting, digestion, muscle activity, cell division and growth. But, the only way the body can get omega-3 is through the foods we eat.
According to Live Science, the new study, which is the largest of its kind to measure the levels of omega-3 fatty acids in the participants' blood, found that increased circulating blood levels of omega-3 fatty acids were directly linked to almost 10 percent decrease in the risk of fatal heart attack, on average, compared with normal levels. Those participants with the highest level of omega-3s in their blood had more than 25 percent lower risk of having a fatal heart attack.
However, the researchers also identified no change in the risk of non-fatal heart attack with higher blood levels of seafood- and plant-based omega-3s, which they say shows there is a highly specific mechanism by which the fatty acids lower heart attack death risk.
The findings were the same after accounting for some possible confusing factors like participants' age, sex, race/ethnicity, the presence of diabetes, and use of aspirin or cholesterol-lowering drugs. Express.co.uk reported that overall, the authors said their results show that consuming foods rich in omega-3 may lower the risk of non-fatal heart attack.
Senior author of the study, Dr. Dariush Mozaffarian from Tufts University, Boston, MA said: "At a time when some but not other trials of fish oil supplementation have shown benefits, there is uncertainty about cardiovascular effects of omega-3s. Our results lend support to the importance of fish and omega-3 consumption as part of a healthy diet."
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TagsOmega-3, Fatty Acids, plant-based fatty acids, seafood-based fatty acids, Heart attack, fatal heart attack ©2024 ScienceWorldReport.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. The window to the world of science news.
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First Posted: Jun 29, 2016 08:33 AM EDT
Omega-3 fatty acids found in fish, especially the fatty ones like salmon, and alpha-linolenic acid (ALA) which is known as the plant-based omega-3 fatty acid can be found in walnuts, canola oil, and some seeds and nuts. A new study revealed that plant-based and seafood-based omega-3 fatty acids were found to be "moderately related" to a reduced risk of dying from heart attacks.
Medical News Today reported that there are about 735,000 people in the United States have a heart attack every year. This usually happens when an area of the heart does not receive enough oxygenated blood. However, there are other studies that questioned the benefits the heart gets from omega-3s, with some even saying that fish supplements, which is a major source of the fatty acids, do not decrease the risk of heart-related situations.
Omega-3s are important fatty acids that the body needs for specific functions, like blood clotting, digestion, muscle activity, cell division and growth. But, the only way the body can get omega-3 is through the foods we eat.
According to Live Science, the new study, which is the largest of its kind to measure the levels of omega-3 fatty acids in the participants' blood, found that increased circulating blood levels of omega-3 fatty acids were directly linked to almost 10 percent decrease in the risk of fatal heart attack, on average, compared with normal levels. Those participants with the highest level of omega-3s in their blood had more than 25 percent lower risk of having a fatal heart attack.
However, the researchers also identified no change in the risk of non-fatal heart attack with higher blood levels of seafood- and plant-based omega-3s, which they say shows there is a highly specific mechanism by which the fatty acids lower heart attack death risk.
The findings were the same after accounting for some possible confusing factors like participants' age, sex, race/ethnicity, the presence of diabetes, and use of aspirin or cholesterol-lowering drugs. Express.co.uk reported that overall, the authors said their results show that consuming foods rich in omega-3 may lower the risk of non-fatal heart attack.
Senior author of the study, Dr. Dariush Mozaffarian from Tufts University, Boston, MA said: "At a time when some but not other trials of fish oil supplementation have shown benefits, there is uncertainty about cardiovascular effects of omega-3s. Our results lend support to the importance of fish and omega-3 consumption as part of a healthy diet."
See Now: NASA's Juno Spacecraft's Rendezvous With Jupiter's Mammoth Cyclone