Omega 3 and Heart Health - Primary Prevention of Heart Disease

Based on the compelling scientific evidence, we believe everyone should have their Omega-3 Index tested.

There are two types of large scale studies that support the role of omega-3s and heart health. The first are randomized controlled human trials that include clinical coronary heart disease endpoints. A number of these studies have been completed in patients who had been previously diagnosed with heart disease, and the results indicate that omega-3s can play a critical role in reducing risk of a second heart attack.

Omega-3 and Primary Prevention of Heart Disease

The second type of large scale study are observational studies where omega-3 levels are measured in blood samples, or omega-3 consumption levels are tracked among thousands of people over significant periods of time. These measures are then correlated to incidence of heart attack or other health conditions. The strong evidence that omega-3s play an important role in the prevention of heart disease among healthy populations is supported by this type of research.

Meta-Analysis Involving 222,000 Individuals

In a meta-analysis of 13 observational cohort studies including 222,000 individuals followed for CHD death for an average of approximately 12 years, it was shown that consumption of only 1 fish meal/wk compared with 1/mo was associated with a statistically significant 15% reduction in risk (1). When subjects were classified into categories of increasing fish consumption (< 1/mo, 1–3/mo, 1/wk, 2– 4/wk, and >5/wk), those in the highest intake group showed a 40% reduction in risk. An inverse relation between fish intake and risk for CHD has also been recently reported in Greek (2) and in Japanese cohorts (3).

Omega-3 Index among Healthy Individuals

In another meta-analysis, Dr. Harris et al showed that EPA + DHA concentrations in blood were inversely related to risk of CHD (4).

A recent case control study in which the omega-3 index was measured in patients admitted to the hospital with acute coronary syndromes showed that this biomarker was a significant predictor of case status, independent of multiple clinical covariates including plasma lipids and lipoproteins (5). Furthermore, across the 3 proposed omega-3 index risk categories, there was an approximate 70% reduction in odds for a heart attack.

Using data from the Physicians’ Health Study, the Omega-3 Index was clearly related to risk of heart attack and sudden cardiac death (6,7). For example, there was a greater than 90 percent reduction in risk of sudden cardiac death for the one-quarter of individuals with the highest Omega-3 Index compared to those with the lowest levels. In this study, the omega-3 index was shown to be an independent predictor of risk.

These studies were conducted in subjects who were free of known CHD at the time of blood sampling, and thus they constitute compelling evidence that a higher Omega-3 Index is predictive of CHD risk among individuals who have not been diagnosed with heart disease

(1) He K, Song Y, Daviglus ML, et al. Accumulated evidence on fish consumption and coronary heart disease mortality: a meta-analysis of cohort studies. Circulation 2004;109:2705–11.

(2) Panagiotakos DB, Pitsavos C, Zampelas A, et al. Fish consumption and the risk of developing acute coronary syndromes: the CARDIO2000 study. Int J Cardiol 2005;102:403–9.

(3) Iso H, Kobayashi M, Ishihara J, et al. Intake of fish and n–3 fatty acids and risk of coronary heart disease among Japanese: the Japan Public Health Center-Based (JPHC) Study Cohort I. Circulation 2006;113:195–202.

(4) Harris WS, Poston WC, Haddock CK. Tissue n–3 and n–6 fatty acids and risk for coronary heart disease events. Atherosclerosis 007;193:1–(3)

(5). Block RC, Harris WS, Reid KJ, Sands SA, Spertus JA. EPA and DHA in blood cell membranes from acute coronary syndrome patients and controls. Atherosclerosis 2008;197:821– 8.

(6) Albert CM, Campos H, Stampfer MJ, et al. Blood levels of long-chain n–3

fatty acids and the risk of sudden death. N Engl J Med 2002;346:1113–8.

(7) Harris WS, von Schacky C. The Omega-3 Index: a new risk factor for death from coronary heart disease? Prev Med 2004;39:212–20.