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Omega-3 can help minor heart problems

A new study from the US has found that adults with high levels of omega-3 in their blood were 30% less likely to develop minor heart problems than the group with the lowest concentration of the fatty acids in their system.

Omega-3, which is most commonly found in oily fish, has been found to have all kinds of health benefits, but this is the first time research has discovered that the substance reduces the risk of someone developing an irregular heart rhythm.

Atrial fibrillation, the medical term for an irregular heartbeat, is common in most Americans in their 80′s and can lead to serious complications such as strokes, heart attacks and heart failure.

The condition is usually treated with medication, but this latest study seems to suggest that the condition is preventable – so long as people stick to a healthy diet and eat plenty of foods rich in omega-3.

Dariush Mozaffarian, senior author of the study and a professor at the Harvard School of Public Health, was keen to point out that a 30% reduction is extremely significant and could easily translate into man saved lives.

The study, published in the journal Circulation, tested for the presence of two different fatty acids in the bloodstream; a much more exact way of calculating their importance to heart health than previous projects, man of which only used diet questionnaires to work out how much omega-3 each participant would have in their system based on their answers.

Blood tests were vital to the accuracy of the study to make sure that participants weren’t lying about how much fish the eat and also to avoid making assumptions about how much of the health-boosting fatty acids were in each meal.

Mozaffarian added that even within species of fish, the amount of omega-3 can vary dramatically, which is why the scientific testing was essential to accurately the record the impact of these healthy oils on the heart. Over 3,000 people aged over 65 took part in the study, which recorded the amount of omega-3 in their blood at various times over a 14-year period.

Almost 800 people in the study group developed an irregular heartbeat, but it was found that among the top omega-3 consumers, the condition was much rarer. This 30% reduction could make a huge difference to the number of people who develop atrial fibrillation; instead of the current 25 out of every 100 people who are affected by an irregular heart rhythm, the number would instead be just 17 out of 100.

 

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