Omega-3 Fish Linked to Improved Heart and Eye Health, Again

This month we came across two unrelated studies exalting the diverse benefits that may be garnered from a diet rich in omega-3 fish oil.

Omega-3s and Atherosclerosis

It should come as no big surprise that omega-3 fatty acids provide heart health benefits. There is a significant body of research that has found that omega-3 fats may reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease and may benefit the heart in many other ways. Adding to this ever-growing body of evidence is a new University of Pittsburgh study that has found that high intakes of omega-3 fish may reduce the risk of atherosclerosis, or "hardening of the arteries," a major risk factor for cardiovascular disease.

Rates of cardiovascular disease are much lower in Japan than they are in the United States, and the Japanese population also eats significantly more fish than Americans. Most Japanese men report eating fish every day, while most American men report eating fish less than once a week. In an effort to evaluate this lifestyle difference, the researchers compared the blood levels of omega-3 fats and the levels of atherosclerosis among three demographically distinct groups of adult men between the ages of 40 and 49. The groups consisted of 281 Japanese men born and living in Japan, 281 Japanese-American men born and living in the US, and 306 Caucasian-American men born and living in the US.

Using various methods for comparison, the researchers determined that the Japanese men living in Japan had the lowest levels of atherosclerosis; significantly lower than those of the Japanese-American and the Caucasian American men, who had similar levels of atherosclerosis. Blood analysis also revealed that the Japanese men had omega-3 blood levels 2 times higher than the two other groups. The researchers found that the higher the levels of blood omega-3, the less atherosclerosis there was. They also noted that the similarity of atherosclerosis levels among the Japanese-American and the Caucasian-American men indicates that the lower levels of cardiovascular disease in Japan is likely due to lifestyle, not genetics.

Omega-3s and AMD

In a second, unrelated, researchers found that eating just one portion of omega-3 fatty acid-rich fish per week may reduce the risk of developing age-related macular degeneration (AMD) by approximately half. This study adds to a sizable amount of research that has recently linked fatty acid consumption with improved eye health.

AMD is the leading cause of blindness in the Western world among individuals over the age of 55. It affects some 25 to 30 million people worldwide, but that number is expected to triple with the aging Baby Boomer generation. AMD is the deterioration if the macula, part of the central retina. This deterioration results in a loss of the central vision, leaving only peripheral vision. There are two forms of AMD, "wet" and "dry". The less-common wet variety, the type that the researcher looked at in this study, occurs when delicate new vessels develop to deliver blood to the oxygen-deprived retina. These new vessels break easily, causing damage to the surrounding tissue.

The study consisted of two groups; 105 people with wet AMD and a control group of 2170 healthy people. All participants were 65 years of age or older. The participants' dietary habits were evaluated using food frequency questionnaires.

The researchers found that those who ate at least one serving of omega-3 fatty acid-rich fish per week had half the odds of developing wet AMD as those who did not consume the fish on a weekly basis. Further, those who consumed at least 300mg daily of DHA & EPA fatty acids reduced their odds of developing wet AMD by more than two-thirds, as compared to those who consumed less of those fatty acids daily. When the researchers broke consumption down to quartiles of amount of fish eaten and compared the quartiles, the researchers found that as consumption increased, the odds of developing AMD decreased.

Learn more about the potential benefits of omega-3 fatty acids here, and learn about our Omega-3 Fish Oil and Extra-Strength Omega-3 Fish Oil.

1. Sekikawa, A., J. D. Curb, et al. (2008). "Marine-derived n-3 fatty acids and atherosclerosis in Japanese, Japanese-American, and white men: a cross-sectional study." J Am Coll Cardiol 52(6): 417-24.

2. Augood, C., U. Chakravarthy, et al. (2008). "Oily fish consumption, dietary docosahexaenoic acid and eicosapentaenoic acid intakes, and associations with neovascular age-related macular degeneration." Am J Clin Nutr 88(2): 398-406.