How much omega-3 fatty acid do we need to prevent cardiovascular disease?

Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology ^ | Aug 31, 2009 | Unknown

[decimon]

New research in the FASEB Journal identifies the 'Goldilocks dose' of DHA that is 'just right' for preventing oxidative stress in men

A team of French scientists have found the dose of DHA (docosahexaenoic acid) that is "just right" for preventing cardiovascular disease in healthy men. In a research report appearing in the September 2009 print issue of The FASEB Journal (http://www.fasebj.org), the scientists show that a 200 mg dose of DHA per day is enough to affect biochemical markers that reliably predict cardiovascular problems, such as those related to aging, atherosclerosis, and diabetes. This study is the first to identify how much DHA is necessary to promote optimal heart health.

"This study shows that regularly consuming small amounts of DHA is likely to improve the health status of people, especially in regards to cardiovascular function," said Michel Lagarde, co-author of the study.

To determine the optimal dose of DHA, Lagarde and colleagues examined the effects of increasing doses of DHA on 12 healthy male volunteers between ages of 53 and 65. These men consumed doses of DHA at 200, 400, 800, and 1600 mg per day for two weeks for each dose amount, with DHA being the only omega-3 fatty acid in their diet. Blood and urine samples were collected before and after each dose and at eight weeks after DHA supplementation stopped. The researchers then examined these samples for biochemical markers indicating the effects of each dose on the volunteers.

"Now that we have a very good idea about how much DHA is just right, the next step is to try it out in an expanded clinical trial that involves many more people," said Gerald Weissmann, M.D., Editor-in-Chief of The FASEB Journal. "Until then, I'll stick with tasty foods that contain DHA, like fish, rather than getting a quick fatty-acid fix at the local vitamin store."

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Receive monthly highlights from The FASEB Journal by e-mail. Sign up at http://www.faseb.org/fasebjournalreaders.htm. The FASEB Journal (http://www.fasebj.org) is published by the Federation of the American Societies for Experimental Biology (FASEB). The journal has been recognized by the Special Libraries Association as one of the top 100 most influential biomedical journals of the past century and is the most cited biology journal worldwide according to the Institute for Scientific Information. FASEB comprises 22 nonprofit societies with more than 80,000 members, making it the largest coalition of biomedical research associations in the United States. FASEB advances biological science through collaborative advocacy for research policies that promote scientific progress and education and lead to improvements in human health.

Details: Nicolas Guillot, Emilie Caillet, Martine Laville, Catherine Calzada, Michel Lagarde, and Evelyne Véricel. Increasing intakes of the long-chain -3 docosahexaenoic acid: effects on platelet functions and redox status in healthy men. FASEB J. 2009 23: 2909-2916. http://www.fasebj.org/cgi/content/abstract/23/9/2909

[irishtenor]

I take 1000 to 2000 daily. It dropped my Tryglicerides from 300 to 160 in 6 months.

[spyone]

Really? I should do this. Thanks.

[nikos1121]

200mg is a very low dose. I don’t know what the equivalent would be, but I would think eating sashimi a couple times per week would be many times more than this.

[ErnBatavia]

I haven’t kept up since I left the fish biz 7 years ago, but at that time the consensus was to try and eat actual oily fish rather than the Omega supplements.

[irishtenor]

Let me know how it comes out. Worked for me.

[irishtenor]

Yep. My pills come in 1000mg doses.

[roofgoat]

I read free range chicken eggs are high in Omega 3. I hope so, I eat enough of them. Hoepfully it fights off my beer drinking, cigar smoking ways.

[TennesseeGirl]

Bookmarked. Thanks for posting.

[decimon]

Yep. My pills come in 1000mg doses.

Mine are 1200mg with 360mg omega-3. DHA and EPA are listed but not as to amounts.

[Scythian]

This is the best fish oil, certified Mercury, PCB and Lead free by indpendent labs. This is a big deal, believe me, you can poison yourself with half the crap that is on the market.



I know alot about these issues.

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Spectrum Fish Oil contains the omega-3 fatty acids EPA and DHA. EPA supports heart health, reduces inflammation and improves cellular integrity, while DHA supports memory and nervous system functioning.*

Our Fish Oil comes from non-threatened species of wild-caught, small, plankton-feeding fish (anchovies, mackerel and sardines) that are low on the food chain. Harvesting these types of fish also ensures that our oil tests below acceptable limits of harmful contaminants set by the Council for Responsible Nutrition and other advisory agencies. Spectrum uses only the purest fish oil with a naturally occurring ratio of 18:12 EPA to DHA. Convenient 1000 mg softgels.

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You can buy this at any Whole Foods store or order it online HERE I take two 1000 mg pills per day ...

[TennesseeGirl]

Here's something you might find of interest:

http://www.escardio.org/communities/eacpr/lifestyle-cvd-literature/volume10/pages/page24.aspx

Daily exercise training may lead to better long-term, event-free survival than stent angioplasty in patients with stable coronary artery disease (CAD) who receive optimal medical treatment, a pilot study suggests.

Coronary revascularization using percutaneous techniques is widely used in the treatment of CAD patients, the researchers note.

They add that, in patients with stable CAD, regular physical exercise training has been shown to improve functional work capacity, myocardial perfusion, and 1-year, event-free survival.

To investigate its long-term benefits further, Sven Moebius-Winkler (Leipzig Heart Center, Germany) and colleagues randomly assigned 101 stable CAD patients to stent angioplasty or conservative management with a strategy that included a daily exercise program.

Both sets of patients received optimised medical standard therapy, the team reported at the European Society of Cardiology EuroPRevent 2009 meeting in Stockholm, Sweden. Clinical status was assessed initially and at follow-up visits using the Canadian Cardiovascular Society classification.

The primary composite endpoint was death from any cause, nonfatal myocardial infarction, cerebrovascular accident, need for any revascularization procedure due to unstable angina, and hospitalization for worsening angina.

Event-free survival at 5 years was significantly higher in the 51 patients receiving exercise training compared with the 50 stented patients, at 63% versus 40%, respectively. During this period, 36 cardiovascular events occurred in 19 patients from the training group compared with 55 events in 30 patients from the stent group.

Based on their findings, the researchers concluded: “At long-term follow up of 5 years, daily exercise training additionally to optimal medical treatment in stable CAD patients leads to a better event free survival rate compared with stent angioplasty.”

[Marie Antoinette]

I have some 500mg Krill oil that has 90mg DHA, if that helps at all.

[LucyJo]

That’s good to know. Thanks for the post.

[csmusaret]

1000mg of fish oil only contains about 120 mg of DHA.

[Scythian]

L-Argnine is an amino acid that can clear clogged arteries, google it, not recommended though for those that have had a heart attack already, it’s the modern wonder of of the heart.

[Scythian]

Spelled it wrong, that’s “L-Arginine” I take 500 mg a day, but take breaks from it.

[presently no screen name]

Did they say why it’s not recommended if one already had a heart attack?

[Joe 6-pack]

Have some karpfen blau...

[LucyJo]

Thanks. Scanned an article about it.

Found this too:
"People with kidney disease and those who take ACE inhibitors or potassium sparing diuretics should not use supplemental L-arginine unless they are under professional supervision."

Anyone deciding to take it should probably do some reading first, as you suggest.

[presently no screen name]

Never mind - got my answer. Thanks for the info.

[Freedom_Is_Good]

Three words... Cod Liver Oil. You can buy it plain for “real men” or flavored.

Fish oils pills can and often do turn rancid and change to trans fats.

[nikos1121]

Then, according to this paper you and probably the majority of us who eat fish three or more times per week are over medicating or perhaps taking toxic doses.

If you google DHA dosages it’s common to recommend 2 to 3gms per day.

The case of aspirin may be similar. One would think that since heart disease seems to be a process of inflammation in the walls of the arteries, and since aspirin is a potent anti-inflammatory medicine, one would think that more is better, however researchers have found that there is a balance and that an 80mg is actually optimum, and there is no increased benefit the more you take.

(please see: http://cme.medscape.com/viewarticle/556309 )

So perhaps it’s the same with DHA. On the other hand, who the h*ll knows.

Also, I didn’t read the whole article, the DHA was given as a supplement or the equivalent in food? DHA is recommended together with Selenium, and Vit E. Was that brought up in the article?

[JoeProBono]

I roll my own

[Joe 6-pack]

"I roll my own"

I picked this up at a used gar lot...

[Sparko]

Wiping coffee from my screen.

[Madam Theophilus]

Check out Heart Scan Blog by Dr. William Davis, a cardiologist who has been reducing atherosclerotic plaque in his patients. His recommendations are: 1. elimination of all wheat, cornstarch & sugar in the diet; 2. high fat intake; 3. Slo-Niacin; 4. 3,000 mg/day fish oil.

http://heartscanblog.blogspot.com/

[blam]

I take 2400 mg a day.

[blam]

"Mine are 1200mg with 360mg omega-3. DHA and EPA are listed but not as to amounts."

Hmmmm.

I read my bottle 'facts' after reading your comment. Here's what mine says:

Natural Fish Oil 2400 mg (2 softgels) --Total Omega 3 Fatty Acids (with EPA and DHA) 720 mg.

Looks like we have the same, I'm taking two softgels daily.

[decimon]

Looks like we have the same...

Except that mine lists the contents of one softgel. I've also been taking two daily. No obvious effect other than cats following me. ;-)

[decimon]

Looks like another twist on a low-carb diet. I did very well on such a diet years ago. Lost my fat and both some low-glycemic (High-glycemic? A roller coaster, at any rate) and arthritic-like conditions.

[blam]

"No obvious effect other than cats following me. ;-)"

LOL. Click on my name and you'll see why the cats don't bother me.

[Paradox]

200 mg is very easy to get. A serving of fish, or one capsule of 1000mg Fish oil would be enough. Fish Oils are probably the most effective supplement sold today. One of the few that really have alot of research backing them up. I take 6 capsules per day currently, but I am currently on a diet that happens to be low in fat, so these fish oils help me get the fat that I need.

[decimon]

I take 6 capsules per day currently...

Do seagulls circle your house? ;-)

[Mogollon]

I have used 1000 mg fish oil caps but I’m now taking two 1300 mg capsules of flaxseed oil. You can get the Flaxseed oil caps at Sams Club or Costco.

[aMorePerfectUnion]

EPA/DHA has health benefits in addition to heart health issues. Health is more than heart health.

200 mg is PUNY.

[decimon]

You can get the Flaxseed oil caps at Sams Club or Costco

I bought some Smart Balance 50/50 Butter Blend. It has some flaxseed oil.

According to the label, a serving is one tablespoon. One serving has 320mg of ALA Omega-3 and 32mg of EPA/DHA Omega-3. Not that I actually understand that but it does look good.

[decimon]

200 mg is PUNY.

What's the Charles Atlas dose?

[aMorePerfectUnion]

“What’s the Charles Atlas dose?

Charles Atlas would INSIST on vitamin D
blood levels at the optimum: between 50-99 ng/mL,
with no sand kicked around.

ampu

[Paradox]

Do seagulls circle your house? ;-)

Heh, not quite, but the fish burps can be horrible. I sometimes substitute a fish oil gel with a flax seed oil gel..

[GGpaX4DumpedTea]

“My pills come in 1000mg doses.”

In that 1000 mg, how much is DHA, how much is EPA? You might be getting only 200 mg DHA.

[irishtenor]

I checked, 300mg.

[GGpaX4DumpedTea]

“300mg.”

That is good. And it probably has more EPA than DHA. Both are supposed to be good, but for different things.