Findings of a new study have shown that heart attack patients who took high doses of fish oil supplements over a period of six months are likely to have improved heart function and less likely to suffer from scarring.
In a new study published in the journal Circulation on Aug. 2, Raymond Kwong, from Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston, and colleagues involved 360 heart attack patients who were randomly assigned to take high doses of omega-3 fatty acids or placebo for six months.
Fatty acids are key components of cell membranes that are known to help with proper immune function, cell signaling and improved cognitive function.
After a heart attack, a portion of the heart is often starved of oxygen, and this part never recovers. To compensate for the compromised tissues, the other healthy tissues need to work harder to maintain the normal pumping function of the heart. Unfortunately, this can lead to the development of scar tissue, which can also threaten the ability of the healthy tissues to do their job.
Kwong and colleagues found that the participants who took high doses of omega-3 fatty acids experienced 6 percent less of this decline in heart function compared with those who took the placebo. The individuals who had the highest levels of omega-3 fats in their blood also showed the greatest reduction in scarring.
Analysis of blood samples likewise showed that the people who took omega-3 supplements had lower levels of inflammatory markers, suggesting that fish oil may reduce inflammation following a heart attack.
"Treatment of patients with acute myocardial infarction with high-dose omega-3 fatty acids was associated with reduction of adverse left ventricular remodeling, noninfarct myocardial fibrosis, and serum biomarkers of systemic inflammation beyond current guideline-based standard of care," the researchers wrote in their study.
The findings of the study suggest that taking omega-3 fatty acid supplements may be a strategy that can be adopted after a heart attack since the heart is likely to remain stronger if more remaining healthy tissues are saved.
Nonetheless, the researchers cautioned that heart attack survivors should not start taking fish oil since the medication that they used is a purified form of fish oil approved by the FDA.
"Whether that has the same components as what one can buy as a dietary supplement remains to be further studied," said Kwong.
Fatty fish such as trout, tuna, salmon and sardines have high levels of omega-3 fatty acids, but patients are unlikely to get the amount of omega-3 fatty acids used in the study from diet alone because the 4 grams daily dose is equivalent to eating an 8-ounce serving of salmon daily for six months.
