Omega-3 Fatty Acids also Demonstrate Very Positive Effects in Cardiovascular Diseases.
New Results from the REDUCE-IT Study: Omega-3 Highly Effective in Reducing Cardiovascular Events
The REDUCE-IT study (Reduction of Cardiovascular Events with Icosapent Ethyl-Intervention Trial) already made headlines in autumn 2018 by demonstrating that the daily high-dose intake of an omega-3 fatty acid derivative (4 g ethyl eicosapentaenoic acid) can reduce the risk of primary cardiovascular events by 25% in high-risk patients treated with statins.
This remarkable result has now been further emphasized and reinforced by an additional analysis and publication from the team led by Prof. Dr. Deepak L. Bhatt, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts, USA.
The risk for both the first cardiovascular event and a subsequent event decreased by 30% compared to placebo.
Conclusion of the study authors: “EPA not only significantly reduces the first cardiovascular event, but also all subsequent events and the overall rate of ischemic endpoints such as heart attacks, strokes, and associated deaths.”
The authors rightly point out that ethyl eicosapentaenoic acid is a derivative of natural omega-3 fatty acid, and naturally, the pharmaceutical company behind it has a strong interest in marketing only this derivative as an FDA-approved drug (VascepaⓇ), but every reader is free to form their own opinion on this.
An important conclusion for us is that negative study statements regarding omega-3 fatty acids and the prevention of cardiovascular diseases are rendered absurd: the dose is crucial! For example, if a protective effect is to be achieved with fish or algae oil, 2 g daily is the minimum dose. All studies that have worked with significantly lower doses should not be included in the assessment of the efficacy of omega-3 fatty acids, and this was precisely the case with many critical study results, in addition to other weaknesses. A comparable situation exists for vitamin D supplementation. Here too, underdosed studies are often used to question the efficacy of the ‘sun hormone’.
Thus, the statement remains: a diet that combines regular fish consumption (fatty smaller marine fish, e.g., herring and sardines) with the supplementation of highly pure fish oil or, even better, algae oil, remains a “matter of the heart” and protects you from cardiovascular events.
To all readers interested in an overview of the preventive effects of omega-3 fatty acids, we also recommend the excellent discussion between Prof. Spitz and Dr. med. Schmiedel titled: Omega-3 Fatty Acids “Hype or Hope?”
Bhatt, D., Steg, P., Miller, M., Brinton, E., Jacobson, T., Ketchum, S., Doyle, R., Juliano, R., Jiao, L., Granowitz, C., Tardif, J. and Ballantyne, C. (2019). Cardiovascular Risk Reduction with Icosapent Ethyl for Hypertriglyceridemia. New England Journal of Medicine, 380(1), pp.11-22.