Fish Oil Health Effects

What are the health effects of fish oil and omega-3 fatty acids?

[This paragraph added 1/16/04] AJCN 134: 183:2004 Changes in diet the past century have caused an epidemic of subclinical deficiency in omega-3 [fish] oil, leading to heart disease, inflammatory disorders, mental and psychiatric diseases, and poor nerve and brain development. Fish oil tables are really important to get!

Fish oil, available as a supplement containing EPA and DHA, provides omega-3 fatty acids, as opposed to the more common omega-6 fatty acids. Research shows there are "good fats" and "bad fats", the good fats being good for your health. The old notion that "fat is fat makes you obese" is now considered wrong, just as research has shown that margarine, which contains trans fats, may be more hazardous to your health than butter, which contains saturated fat.

Elevated triglyceride levels in the blood and elevated LDL are recognized as risk factors for heart disease. "Currently, there is also increasing interest in the role of inflammation in CVD [cardiovascular disease]...Inflammation also appears to be important in the later stages of CVD, when the tendency of established plaque to rupture depends on the degree of inflammation present". EPA and DHA "have lipid-modifying and antiinflammatory properties."

Evidence indicates that fish oil lowers a person's level of "bad" cholesterol [LDL and triglycerides], raises the level of good cholesterol [HDL], and has many other benefits. In the study cited below, "the 4:2 group was estimated to have a 43% reduction in the 10-y risk of myocardial infarction [heart attack]". The 4:2 is 4 g EPA+DHA and 2 g GLA [gamma-linoleic acid]. AJCN 77:37-42 (Jan 2003):