Heart Patients Do Not Benefit From Omega-3 Supplements: Study

Taking supplements of Omega-3, the fatty acids found in fish, showed no added benefits for heart attack patients, a German study found Monday, contradicting previous research.

"The OMEGA trial found no significant differences in the rates of heart attack, stroke, sudden cardiac death or death from any cause among patients assigned to guidelines-based optimal medical care alone or optimal medical care plus Omega-3 fatty acids," the study said.

Heart Attack - Overview
Heart attack is the death of the heart muscle due to loss of blood supply. Heart disease is the leading cause of death in the United States. Other names for heart attack include acute myocardial infarction, coronary thrombosis, and coronary occlusion.

It was unveiled at the 58th conference of the American College of Cardiology which has been meeting since Saturday in Orlando, Florida.

But it goes against the findings of earlier studies which have said Omega-3 extracts can prolong the lives of heart attack patients.

The study authors said, however, that those studies had been conducted when the treatment for heart conditions was not as advanced as it is today.

Animation of heart attack symptoms
Heart attack can cause symptoms such as Chest pain or discomfort, Shortness of breath and pain in neck, back, arm, or shoulder and is due to blockage of blood supply to the heart muscles

"In our study, we saw no beneficial effect. In patients who are already taking optimal medical therapy, cardiac event rates become very low and Omega-3 do not further improve them," said Jochen Senges, a professor of cardiology at the Heart Center Ludwigshafen, University of Heidelberg, Germany.

The study involved 3,827 patients from 104 German hospitals, heart centers and university hospitals.

Advantages of Eating Fish Foods - Fish Oil
Fish oil protects against heart disease, discover the health benefits of fish oil.

Between three to 14 days after suffering a heart attack, patients were randomly prescribed one year's treatment with highly purified Omega-3 fatty acids or a placebo.

"It would be incorrect to say that Omega-3 fatty acids are not effective, but we could not find any additional benefits after optimizing medical therapy," Senges said.

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Source-AFP
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