Mainstream Media (Finally) Reels One In: Study Confirms Fish Oil Better Than Cholesterol Meds for Treating Heart Failure
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This latest news won’t come as a surprise to many of you. After all, if you’re visiting a website like this, you’re probably already living the lifestyle I advocate (i.e. enjoying all the things untainted by chemical enhancements and additives, while avoiding as much as possible those things loaded with chemicals or artificially enhanced). That’s what I try to teach you here – how to stay as healthy as possible for as long |
| as possible. So when I tell you that the mainstream media has reported on a study that says fish oil supplements are better than cholesterol medications in treating people with chronic heart failure, I’m sure many of you are saying, “Big whoop! I already knew that!” But believe me, this is HUGE news – especially for those who wouldn’t jump aboard the “alternative health lifestyle” bandwagon until it was reported by a “reputable” source. Perhaps now they will. | |
A group of Italian physicians analyzed several thousand participants, all of whom had recurring or previous issues with heart failure – a condition that renders blood flow throughout the body insufficient due to an enlarged heart. They split the groups in two giving approximately 2,000 patients in one group a fish oil supplement, produced by Norway’s Pronova BioPharma, and the other group a placebo. They were to take these pills daily for the duration of the study period, which was about four years.
At the four year mark, the researchers found that those taking the fish oil supplement yielded better results compared to those taking the placebo (1,981 people taking the fish oil supplement either were admitted to the hospital for heart failure or died as a result of it, compared to the 2,053 taking the placebo).
The researchers then took their findings and compared it to their results from a separate-but-related study, one that split 4,600 participants into two groups (about 2,300 each). In this study, the groups either got the cholesterol pill Crestor or a placebo. Amazingly (not so much from our perspective, though), the researchers found virtually no difference in the amount of times people were either admitted to the hospital for heart failure or died as a result of it.
This finding led researchers to conclude that, yes, fish oil supplements perform better than cholesterol treatments in helping people recover from heart failure. Their findings are published in the medical journal Lancet.
The researchers remain uncertain as to what accounts for the discrepancy in effectiveness. When asked by the Associated Press about it, Dr. Robert Bonow theorized that since cell membranes that line the heart muscle are made of fatty acids, perhaps the omega-3s replace what’s lost via heart failure more effectively. Bonow is the former president of the American Heart Association and current chief of Cardiology at Northwestern University Hospital.
The researchers themselves say that there isn’t any one fish oil supplement better than another, but that doctors should begin advising patients with current or previous heart problems to start taking fish oil.
The researchers may not advocate one fish oil supplement over another, but I will. The one I use every day is Carlson’s Fish and Cod Liver Oil. They’re very high in EPA and DHA and are vigilant in making sure their fish oil comes from the most pure source available by analyzing them in their FDA-registered laboratory.
Reports in the mainstream media on findings like these justify why I believe so strongly in natural health and reconfirm the love I have of what I do for a living. If you’re not currently taking a fish oil supplement, I hope this report was compelling enough to entice you.
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- Moms that Eat Fish Low in Mercury Produce Smart Kids, Study Finds
- The “Miracle Mineral” Selenium Aids In The Reduction of Heart Disease, Study Finds
 
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Posted: September 8th, 2008 under cholesterol, Fatty Acids.
