Women: 25% less chance of heart failure with Omega 3 supplements

The risk of heart failure in women can be reduced by 25 percent by increasing consumption of fish rich in Omega-3. This was demonstrated by a group of researchers in a study published in theEuropean Journal of Clinical Nutrition. According to the scholars, led by Emily Levitan of the University of Alabama at Birmingham (United States), the health benefits come from the Omega-3s contained in oily fish.

Fatty acids for the cardiovascular system

Omega-3s are valuable allies for the heart and blood vessels. Several studies have shown their effectiveness in reducing certain cardiovascular risk factors, such as excessively high blood triglyceride levels, thrombus formation, and elevated blood pressure values.

This study focused on heart failure, a disorder that arises when the heart is no longer able to pump enough blood to the rest of the body. The resulting symptoms (fatigue, weakness, difficulty walking, irregular heartbeat and a persistent cough or wheezing) are the most common cause of hospitalization over age 65.

The participants in the study

The research was based on analysis of data on 36,234 women aged 48 to 83 years involved in a study that began in 1998 and ended in 2006. At the beginning of this study, none of the participants had ever suffered from either heart failure, heart attack or diabetes.

Information on participants' nutrition was collected using a questionnaire consisting of 96 questions. During the 18 years of data collection, 651 cases of cardiac arrest were recorded.

Omega-3 friends of the female heart

Levitan and colleagues found that in women who ate one serving of oily fish per week, the risk of heart failure was reduced by 20 percent compared with that typical of women who never ate it. The observed reduction was even greater, 30%, in those women who chose to put this type of fish on their plate 2 days out of 7.

A clear correlation also emerged between the amount of marine-derived Omega 3 taken and reduced risk of heart failure: a 25 percent lower rate of heart failure was found among women who took more than those who took less.

Based on these findings, the researchers concluded that in these women, moderate consumption of fatty fish and marine-derived Omega-3 correlates with a lower rate of hospitalization or death due to heart failure.

Benefits for men as well

The results gathered in this study add to those obtained by the same authors in earlier research published in theEuropean Heart Journal. There, Levitan's group had shown that moderate consumption of marine-derived Omega-3s reduced the risk of cardiac arrest in men by 33 percent.  

Sources

1. Levitan EB, Wolk A, Mittleman MA, "Fatty fish, marine omega-3 fatty acids and incidence of heart failure," Eur J Clin Nutr. 2010 Jun;64(6):587-94. Epub 2010 Mar 24

 2. Levitan EB, Wolk A, Mittleman MA, "Fish consumption, marine omega-3 fatty acids, and incidence of heart failure: a population-based prospective study of middle-aged and elderly men," Eur Heart J. 2009 Jun;30(12):1495-500. Epub 2009 Apr 21