subject: Scientific Evidence About Omega 3 And Heart Benefits [print this page] Many scientific trials have been conducted to study the advantages of omega 3 on the heart. It has been noticed that when the heart is experiencing , the contracting of the heart muscles of the ventricle chambers, it could be the cause of a fatal heart attack. The contractions don't occur steadily and they start to quiver instead of contracting as they are supposed to do. If this is not stopped , it could result in a cardiac arrest and the patient could even die. Omega 3 fatty acids have been found to stop this ventricular fibrillation in animal studies. These animal were undergoing heart attacks. Medical fraternity feels that if humans get enough omega 3 in their diet, it could stop ventricular fibrillation in humans too. Ventricular fibrillation is one of the major causes of death in people having a heart attack. Taking omega 3 could prevent these deaths.
It has also been found that if we consume fish at least once a week or maybe more, then we would be able to reduce the risk of having a fatal heart attack as compared to a person who ate fish only once a month. They took notes of the blood levels of omega 3 found in the men who had died of a fatal heart attack. The tests were then compared with the people of the same age group and having similar lifestyles. They discovered that the men who had higher levels of omega 3 fatty acids in their blood levels ran an 80% lesser chance of suffering from a fatal heart attack. Even though they led a similar lifestyle to the people who had died. Obviously the high levels of omega 3 in the blood was due to eating at least one serving of fish a week.
Women, who eat fish at least once a week have a 29% less chance of developing heart problems than a woman who eats fish rarely. Eating fish 5 times a week, reduced the chances of developing heart diseases by 34%. They also had 45% less chance of having a fatal heart attack. It appears that women have to eat more fish than men and still have just 45% reduction in chances of having a heart attack, as compared to men achieving an 80% chance.
The scientific evidence shows that there is definitely a benefit of omega 3 towards the prevention of ventricular fibrillation.
When testing a group who had eaten the Mediterranean diet, it was found that there was at least a 50% lesser chance of having a fatal heart attack or second heart attack. While a group of people eating a Western diet didn't do that well. The Mediterranean diet is rich in omega 3 fatty acids. The Mediterranean diet consist of more mono unsaturated fats, fruits, vegetables and nuts along with fish.
The test found that omega 3 is good in preventing a sudden fatal heart attack but it does not stop you from having future heart attacks. The Mediterranean diet is good in preventing fatal heart attacks and also preventing you from having additional heart attacks.
Eating a Mediterranean diet is difficult if you live in the United States. The supply of cold water oily fish isn't as easy to get. There are frozen varieties claiming that they contain omega 3, I have yet to find one that contains much. Fresh fish is also very scarce. We can still eat the vegetables, the fruits, nuts and try and watch our fats. Our basic requirement is mono unsaturated fats. We need to stay clear of trans fats and saturated fats.
The studies are in. The results are to try and include more fish to your diet. If that is not possible, then you should try and eat some other food that can provide you with omega 3. No matter what, we need to work more omega 3 into our diets. Eat fish more often than once a month.
If you cannot get enough omega 3, there are supplements. Do talk to your doctor first before taking any supplements, especially if you are on any medications. A lot of medications don't mix well with other items.
