Fish Oil May Reduce Risk of Irregular Heartbeat
Mon Apr 8, 2002

By Charnicia E. Huggins

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Previous studies have suggested that fish oil supplements may reduce the risk of an additional heart attack or stroke in patients who have recently experienced a heart attack. Now new study findings reveal that the supplement may also reduce the risk of sudden death.

The findings show that this reduced risk was evident after as few as 3 months, which seems to support the hypothesis that adding n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs)--commonly found in fish and fish oil--to a healthy diet may lower the risk of fatal arrhythmia, an irregular heartbeat that in severe cases can lead to cardiac arrest, the authors report.

"Reduction of sudden death appeared early after start of treatment," lead study author Dr. Roberto Marchioli, of Consorzio Mario Negri Sud in Italy, told Reuters Health. This "seems to support the idea that (the benefits of PUFAs) could be due to an anti-arryhythmia effect," he added.

The study included 11,323 patients who had suffered a heart attack within the previous 3 months. All of the patients received the same preventive care and ate Mediterranean-style diets rich in fruits, vegetables, olive oil and fish. But some patients also consumed 1 gram of the fish oil supplements per day.

During the 3.5-year follow-up period, 1,031 individuals died, Marchioli and his colleagues report in the April issue of the Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association (news - web sites).

Patients who took the fish oil supplements appeared to be at a 41% lower risk of death from any cause after only 3 months of treatment, study findings indicate.

After 4 months of treatment, these patients also appeared to be at a significantly reduced risk of sudden cardiac death. And by the end of the study period, patients treated with fish oil supplements were 45% less likely to die suddenly from a heart-related cause, Marchioli and his colleagues report.

In light of the findings, Marchioli said that the benefit of fish oil supplements "seems to be additive to the benefit that can be obtained by standard preventive treatment."

"One capsule of a fish oil concentrate daily for 3.5 years resulted in a very significant reduction in sudden cardiac death. Thus, a simple and safe change in diet can potentially produce a large public health benefit," editorialist Dr. Alexander Leaf of Harvard Medical School (news - web sites) in Boston, Massachusetts, told Reuters Health.

"Individuals who have known coronary heart disease or a family history of coronary heart disease among immediate relatives would be prudent to heed the recent advice of the American Heart Association to eat two or more meals of oily fish per week or take a daily supplement of fish oil capsules," Leaf added.

SOURCE: Circulation 2002;105.


http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tm...heart_fishoil_1

This seems to be in line with the more recent report that was just posted. Still no mechanism suggested, but the same results were seen. This is pretty dramatic stuff too.

Good stuff! This is one supplement I am taking. I think I'm getting 1g a day of it in my two capsules.

I think the sinificant component in the fish oil is the vitamin D. Vitamin D has been connected in studies with heart health as well as a myriad of other conditions.

I didn't even see vit D as a component in my fish oil caps. Of course I wasn't looking whether it had that, only what level of DHA/EPA they contained. The one time I input stuff in Fitday, vit D was the one most lacking in my diet.

But you can go stand in the sun for 10 minutes a day and get all the vit D you need! Providing you live where they have sunshine.

I knew that, and I am one who does get out in the sun on a semi-regular basis (hunting, fishing, hiking, etc). Its a little cold this time of year though, so just how much skin I'm exposing is a question. And since I don't drink milk, I feel like a supplement might be a good idea. Hopefully the fish oil caps have some, and hopefully I can start remembering to take them.

Vlitamin D from sun during winter, spring, fall is minimal unless you live far south and there are few cloudy days. Ten minutes won't do it either. Also African Americans, Northern Europeans, Hasidic Jews and Muslin Women are also prone to vitamin D deficiency. Take the fish oils.

Too much vitamin D can also cause a lot of problems.


The NIH says this about sunshine:

http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/...icle/002405.htm



I don't know that fish oil capsules, other than cod-liver oil -- which I wouldn't take for fear of Vitamin A excess and the pollutents found in it -- contain vitamin D. But like Tom, my fish oil capsules don't list vitamin D content.

15 minutes of sun is fine, but what amount of skin surface area must I expose for that length of time? I have my modesty after all, and people have been known to try and roll me back in the water at the beach. Not to mention my built-in hair vest screens out a lot of UV rays.

I'm something of a weakling already, you think I'm making too much vitD already?

Well... lets see, the NIH says:



And they give an healthy example:



Seriously, I don't know. We'll have to research that one. Personally I'm hoping I get it from hanging my arm out of the window on my drive home.

They did also mention that you get Vit. D from eating healthy food too.

Oh! Lookee! Ask Google and ye shall find:



I have to assume that your body doesn't get poisoned by too much D when it makes it yourself.

Got milk? The low carb kind also has vitamin D.

It's the man made vitamin D that's toxic. Natural vitamin D is not toxiic at even 50,000 IU/day. The total vitamin D necessary for good health from sun, food and supplements is 4,000 IU/day.



Vitamin D levels can be tested and it's been disproved that 5 minutes at the beach provides enough...unless you're in the Caribbean or Tropics.

Sounds to me, like getting at least SOME D in supplement form is a good idea. Of course I walked out of the house without taking any supplements once again.

I never knew vitamins could be so titillating.