What is all the hype about fish oil?
The words “fish oil” lead many people to visualize a less than pleasant childhood memory of their mother pushing a tablespoon of cod liver oil into their mouth, insisting that it would keep them healthy.
As usual, our mothers were right!! I know, it sounds too slimy and smelly to be good for you. However, fish oil has more to offer than most people realize. Fish oil is rich in omega-3 fatty acids. Omega-3s are essential fatty acids (EFAs) that our bodies are unable to create on their own. Therefore, we must obtain EFAs from food. Most people do not get enough of these polyunsaturated fats from their diet. This is why supplementation with fish oils can be so important to our health. EPA and DHA play a key role in brain development, nervous system function, and eyesight.
They also play a protective role in the body, reducing the risk of developing high blood pressure, arthritis, cancers, and heart disease. In fact, a large amount of research on omega-3s has focused on their effects on heart disease. EPA and DHA are linked to lower triglyceride levels, decreasing one’s risk for atherosclerosis. These two fatty acids can also decrease inflammation in the body, improve immune function and promote skin, hair and nail health.
Recent clinical research has shown that not only the quantity of fat in the diet, but also the type of fat affects body weight and metabolism. Diets rich in omega-3 oils result in healthier body weight and metabolism as well as the best body composition in terms of fat/muscle ratio. In addition, fish oils act as strong antioxidants throughout the body and improve the oxygen delivery to cells thus improving aerobic performance. If purchasing fish oil, make sure it is from a reliable source, free of environmental contaminants (pesticides and heavy metals), and contains vitamin E to protect and preserve the oil. It is important to store your oil in a cool location, away from direct light.
Feel free to contact Dr. Riley Jones with any questions regarding information in this article.
Ilene Orlowski
267 days ago
Hi Dr Riley Jones,
I found this article online on Dr Bernard’s blog on the PCRM website..wondering what you think.
Omega-3 Fatty Acids Linked to Prostate Cancer Risk
4/27/11
471ShareA new study will make people think twice about taking fish-oil capsules—or eating fish, for that matter. The American Journal of Epidemiology reports that men with higher levels of DHA, one of the omega-3 fatty acids found in fish oil, were at increased risk of developing prostate cancer.
Researchers from Seattle’s Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center looked at 3,461 participants in the Prostate Cancer Prevention Trial and found that men with the most DHA in their bloodstreams were two-and-a-half times more likely to have an aggressive form of prostate cancer. Similar results were found in the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition study, where men who had the highest omega-3 levels had the highest risk for prostate cancer.
In many recent studies, fish oil has not lived up to its marketing claims. Specifically, it is no help for heart patients, does not forestall Alzheimer’s disease, does not prevent depression, and—so far at least—does not make babies smarter.
Back in 2005, a Journal of the American Medical Association report showed that fish oil may actually increase the risk of cardiac arrhythmias in some patients. In the same year, JAMA also reported that fish oil does not prevent cancer.
The following year, the British Medical Journal reported that omega-3 fatty acids have no heart-health benefit. Among nearly 4,000 heart attack patients, no difference was seen between those who consumed omega-3 supplements and those who took placebo pills. That conclusion was echoed in 2009, when researchers found that consuming fish does not reduce the risk of heart failure. Then in 2010, the New England Journal of Medicine reported similarly dismal results with heart patients given omega-3 fatty acids in addition to standard drug therapy. They had no reduction in cardiovascular events.
Surprisingly, Harvard linked fish and omega-3 fats to type 2 diabetes. Following 195,204 adults for 14 to 18 years, researchers reported in 2009 that they had found that the more fish or long-chain omega-3 fatty acids participants consumed, the higher their risk of developing diabetes.
Meanwhile, fish oil manufacturers pinned their hopes on brain function. Maybe fish oil will make you smarter, they reasoned. But last year, what researchers found dashed those hopes, too. A group of 867 elderly people were randomly assigned to either a fish-oil supplement or placebo. After two years of supplementation, elderly adults showed no benefit at all in tests for reaction time, spatial memory, and processing speed measurements. A later JAMA report showed that omega-3 supplements do not slow mental decline in Alzheimer’s patients. And at the other end of the age spectrum, babies get no benefit either. A JAMA report showed that consumption of fish oil during pregnancy does not benefit babies’ cognitive development.
In these reports, fish oil is starting to look a lot like snake oil. The new findings linking higher DHA levels to cancer add yet another reason to skip fish and fish oil supplements.
Are you a health professional? Learn more about diet and cancer for continuing education credits at NutritionCME.org.
In case you’re interested in the references for these studies, here they are:
Brasky TM, Till C, White E, et al. Serum phospholipid fatty acids and prostate cancer risk: results from the Prostate Cancer Prevention Trial. Am J Epidemiol. Published ahead of print April 24, 2011. doi: 10.1093/aje/kwr027.
Raitt MH, Connor WE, Morris C, et al. Fish oil supplementation and risk of ventricular tachycardia and ventricular fibrillation in patients with implantable defibrillators: a randomized controlled trial. JAMA. 2005;293:2884-2891.
MacLean CH, Newberry SJ, Mojica WA, et al. Effects of omega-3 fatty acids on cancer risk: a systematic review. JAMA. 2005;295:403-415.
Hooper L, Thompson RL, Harrison RA, et al. Risks and benefits of omega-3 fats for mortality, cardiovascular disease, and cancer: systematic review. BMJ. 2006;332:752-760.
Dijkstra SC, Brouwer IA, van Rooij FJA, Hofman A, Witteman JCM, Geleijnse JM. Intake of very long chain n-3 fatty acids from fish and the incidence of heart failure: the Rotterdam Study. Eur J Heart Fail. 2009;11:922-928.
Kromhout D, Giltay EJ, Geleijnse JM. n-3 fatty acids and cardiovascular events after myocardial infarction. N Engl J Med. 2010;363:2015-2026.
Kaushik M, Mozaffarian D, Spiegelman D, Manson JE, Willett WC, Hu FB. Long-chain omega-3 fatty acids, fish intake, and the risk of type 2 diabetes mellitus. Am J Clin Nutr. 2009;90:613-620.
Dangour AD, Allen E, Elbourne D, et al. Effect of 2-y n23 long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acid supplementation on cognitive function in older people: a randomized, double-blind, controlled trial. Am J Clin Nutr. 2010;91:1725-1732.
Quinn JF, Rama R, Thomas RG, et al. Docosahexaenoic acid supplementation and cognitive decline in Alzheimer disease. JAMA. 2010;304:1903-1911.
Makrides M, Gibson RA, McPhee AJ, et al. Effect of DHA Supplementation During Pregnancy on Maternal Depression and Neurodevelopment of Young Children. JAMA. 2010;304:1675-1683.
LauraJones
64 days ago
Hi Ilene,
This is a literature review of several studies that do no support the use of fish oil. Unfortunately, there is a mixed bag of studies on almost all supplements. There are several well designed studies supporting the use of fish oil for the same disease states listed above. This makes it very hard for the average person to make decisions about what is and is not safe to take. This is when it is helpful to have an ND to help you make educated choices. I am very enthusiastic about fish oil; not only because of the number of well designed studies showing that it is safe and efficacious but because of the great success I have using it in the clinical setting. It is also my opinion that many studies involving fish oil are using sub-therapeutic doses of the oil. Of course, it is incredibly important that a patient is taking a fish oil clean of heavy metals and PCBs and makes sure to store it in a cool location so it is protected from heat which can change it to a trans-fat.
Here are a list of studies that address the use of fish oil in some of the disease states listed in the literature review. Let me know if you have any other questions. Dr. Jones
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17223546
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17490962
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22071708
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21849596
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20534874