Originally published September 22 2005
Fish oil may reduce the risk of heart attacks, scientists say
by Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, NaturalNews Editor
Fish oil not only has ant-inflammatory properties and helps lower bad cholesterol levels in the body, it also contains omega-3 fatty acids that help prevent blood clots and abnormal heart rhythms that can lead to heart attack, and as the public learns more about fish oil's health benefits, fish oil supplement sales in the United States have increased from $35 million in 1995 to an estimated $310 million this year.
That's because it has something other healing products in the marketplace lack: Science behind its health claims.
Studies show that the omega-3 fatty acids in fish oil can reduce heart-attack risk by preventing blood clots and abnormal heart rhythms, which cause sudden death.
And because of its apparent blood-thinning effects, it's not a good fit for patients on prescription blood thinners or headed into surgery.
But for people concerned about their heart health, and for the doctors who treat them, fish oil may be a great catch.
Sales of fish oil supplements in the United States have climbed accordingly, from $35 million in 1995 to an estimated $310 million this year, according to the Nutrition Business Journal, which tracks the dietary supplement industry.
The Inuit diet was replete with cold-water fish containing omega-3s.
Since then, the benefits of omega-3s have been studied for their role in stabilizing heart-muscle cells, thus reducing the likelihood of arrhythmia; in fighting inflammation, and making arteries more elastic.
In May, it announced a partnership with Leiner Health Products, a large manufacturer of over-the-counter drugs and store-brand vitamins, minerals and supplements, to sell Bumble Bee fish oil pills.
"Everybody was kind of sitting back and saying, 'Wow, consumers find value in this, along with the physician community and scientists.
Fatty fish such as salmon, albacore tuna, bluefish, mackerel, lake trout, herring and sardines are especially good sources for the helpful omega-3s: EPA, or eicosapentaenoic acid, and DHA, or docosahexaenoic acid.
This kind of information wasn't available 20 years ago, when Michael S. Vogel first tried fish oil.
In April, under the supervision of Penn's Rader, Vogel again began taking fish oil capsules, along with prescription statin medications, to help control his cholesterol.
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