Omega 3 is a type of fat. A small amount of omega 3 fat is very important for the health and can be found in various foods. Primary types of omega 3 fatty acid are the alpha linolenic acid (ALA), eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), and the docosahexaenoic acid (DHA). ALA is commonly found in fats in nuts and seeds. EPA and DHA, also known as long chain omega 3 fat, are naturally found in fatty fish such as salmon and fish oil including the cod oil.

The increase of omega 3 fat consumption is due to the common belief that omega 3 can protect against heart diseases. There are a number of mechanisms that can prevent heart diseases, including lowering blood pressure and reducing cholesterol. Omega 3 fat can be used as an over-the-counter supplement.

A study was conducted by combining the results of 79 random experiments involving 112.059 people. The experiments asserted the effect of increasing consumption of omega 3, compared to regular omega 3 or lower, to heart diseases and blood circulations. 25 of the experiments were considered reputable due to their execution.

Researchers found that the increase of omega 3 consumption gives little benefit, with little to no significant effect to risks of death from various causes. The risks of death from various causes were from 8.8% of the people increasing their omega 3 fat consumption, compared to 9% in a controlled group.

They also found that consuming more long chain omega 3 fats (including EPA and DHA), particularly through supplements, may result in little to no differences in cardiovascular disease risks, coronary heart deaths, coronary heart diseases, stroke, or heart aberration. Long chain omega 3 fats may reduce blood fats, triglycerides, and HDL cholesterol. Reducing triglycerides tend to protect the heart against diseases, but reducing HDL has an opposing effect. Researchers gather information on the danger through researches, but information on haemorrhage and blood clotting is very limited.

A systematic review shows that more consumption of ALA through food or supplements may have little to no effect on cardiovascular death risks. However, consuming more ALA may reduce the risk of heart aberration by 3.3 to 2.6%. The reviewing team found that the reduction of cardiovascular incidents with ALA is very small and approximately 1.000 people need to increase ALA consumption for one of them to gain the benefit. A similar result was found in terms of cardiovascular death risk. Not enough data was found from studies to measure the risk of haemorrhage or blood clotting using ALA.

Increasing the consumption of long chain omega 2 or ALA may not impact weight or obesity.

Cochrane primary writer, Dr Lee Hooper from the University of East Anglia, Britain said: "We can be confident in the findings of this review which go against the popular belief that long-chain omega 3 supplements protect the heart. This large systematic review included information from many thousands of people over long periods. Despite all this information, we don't see protective effects.

"The review provides good evidence that taking long-chain omega 3 (fish oil, EPA or DHA) supplements do not benefit heart health or reduce our risk of stroke or death from any cause. The most trustworthy studies consistently showed little or no effect of long-chain omega 3 fats on cardiovascular health. On the other hand, while oily fish is a healthy food, it is unclear from the small number of trials whether eating more oily fish is protective of our hearts.

"This systematic review did find moderate evidence that ALA, found in plant oils (such as rapeseed or canola oil) and nuts (particularly walnuts) may be slightly protective of some diseases of the heart and circulation. However, the effect is very small, 143 people would need to increase their ALA intake to prevent one person from developing an arrhythmia. One thousand people would need to increase their ALA intake to prevent one person dying of coronary heart disease or experiencing a cardiovascular event. ALA is an essential fatty acid, an important part of a balanced diet, and increasing intakes may be slightly beneficial for prevention or treatment of cardiovascular disease."

Text by Rezky Zakiri
Stock photos from Balia Rahman Soeroso

Source(s):

• Omega 3 supplement have little or o heart or vascular health benefit (2018), https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2018/07/180717194558.htm, August, 2018.