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Miner’s "Miracle" Leads Stellar Omega-3/Health Summary

Mr. McCloy suffered extreme carbon monoxide exposure, which normally results in severe brain damage. While Mr. MCloy received the standard interventions, including hyperbaric oxygen treatment, these were not expected to prevent serious disability.

Instead, his neurosurgeon – Julian Bailes, M.D. of West Virginia University – believes the miner was spared only by the unprecedented decision to administer very high doses of omega-3 fish oil.

Dr. Bailes said McCloy had almost no measurable brain activity until they started feeding him fish oil through a tube, which provided huge doses of the two key omega-3 fatty acids (EPA and DHA).

As the authors of the Men’s Health article wrote, “… unexpectedly, McCloy emerged from his coma. This in itself was amazing, but he wasn't done. In the weeks that followed, he stunned even the most optimistic experts by recovering his memory and gradually regaining his ability to walk, talk, and see, a turnaround that many in the medical field called miraculous.”

The conclusion of this part of the article is worth quoting: “’The omega-3s helped rebuild the damaged gray and white matter of his brain,’ says Dr. Bailes, who now takes his own medicine, swallowing a fish-oil supplement each morning. On his orders, McCloy, still recuperating at home, continues to take fish oil daily. ‘I would say he should be on it for a lifetime,’ says Dr. Bailes. ‘But then, I think everybody should.’”
Miner’s "Miracle" Leads Stellar Omega-3/Health Summary

Very interesting! I didn't see the article.
Thanks.

That's awesome! I just got my October issue of Nutrition Action, a publication of Center for Science in the Public Interest, a non-profit group. The leading article is on Omega Medicine and it quotes heart expert William Harris, "In the nutrition world, it's one of the biggest success stories in decades."

I have 3 posts on omega-3 fats in my blog if anyone is interested in learning more about them.

NEW GUIDELINES FOCUS ON FISH, FISH OIL, OMEGA-3 FATTY ACIDS
Healthy people should eat omega-3 fatty acids from fish and plant sources to protect their hearts, according to updated American Heart Association recommendations (1).

"Omega-3 fatty acids are not just good fats; they affect heart health in positive ways," says Penny Kris-Etherton, PhD, RD, lead author of the report. They make the blood less likely to form clots that cause heart attacks and protect against irregular heartbeats that cause sudden cardiac death.

The comprehensive report examines the health benefits of omega-3 fatty acids in the context of cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk reduction and considers the recent Environmental Protection Agency and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) guidance about the presence of contaminants in certain species of fish.

Since 2000, the American Heart Association's dietary guidelines have recommended that healthy adults eat at least two servings of fish per week, particularly fish such as mackerel, lake trout, herring, sardines, albacore tuna and salmon. These fish contain two omega-3 fatty acids, eicosapentaenoic and docosahexaenoic acids (EPA and DHA). A third kind is less potent, alpha-linolenic acid and comes from plants, including tofu and other forms of soybeans, canola, walnut and flaxseed and oils made from those nuts and seeds.

People who have elevated triglycerides may need 2 to 4 grams of EPA and DHA per day provided as a supplement. Even the 1 gram/day dose recommended for patients with existing CVD may be more than can readily be achieved through diet alone. These people should consult their physician to discuss taking supplements to reduce heart disease risk. Patients taking more than 3 grams of omega-3 fatty acids from supplements should do so only under a physician's care.

The FDA has noted that high intakes could cause excessive bleeding in some people. Depending on their stage of life consumers need to be aware of both the benefits and risks of eating fish. Children, pregnant and nursing women may be at increased risk of exposure to excessive mercury from fish but also are generally at low risk for CVD. Thus, avoiding potentially contaminated fish is a higher priority for these groups, says Kris-Etherton.

For middle aged and older men, and postmenopausal women, the benefits of eating fish far outweigh the risks within the established guidelines.

"This is hopeful news as we have found that the effects of omega-3 fatty acids on heart disease risk is seen in relatively short periods of time," Kris-Etherton says. "The research shows that all omega-3 fats have cardio-protective benefits, especially those in fish."

Although the mechanisms responsible for omega-3 fatty acids' reduction of CVD risk are still being studied, research has shown:

· Decreased risk of sudden death and arrhythmia.
· Decreased thrombosis (blood clot).
· Decreased triglyceride levels.
· Decreased growth of atherosclerotic plaque.
· Improved arterial health.
· Lowered blood pressure.

Reference:
1. Kris-Etherton PM, Harris WS, Appel LJ. Fish consumption, fish oil, omega-3 fatty acids, and cardiovascular disease. Circulation; November 19, 2002; 106(21); pp. 2747-57.

Source: AHA Press Release; November 18, 2002; href="http://www.eurekalert.org/ pub_releases/2002-11/aha-ngf111302.php"

A physician comments on the fish oil–flax seed oil debate
Dr. Peter Everett

Epidemiologic evidence has pointed to the cardiovascular benefits of fish and fish oil for a very long time [1], gaining momentum in the 1970s with the observation that Greenland Inuits, with a very high omega-3 intake and very high fat diets had a very low risk of cardiovascular disease, but it was not until the large and well-conducted Italian GISSI Prevenzione [2] trial in 1999 which showed that a very modest 1gm supplementation of EPA & DHA significantly reduced mortality in post-heart attack patients that the medical establishment took widespread notice of fish oil.

As far as I know, there is no similar evidence base in favor of flax seed oil. Therefore, I would have a hard time saying that flax seed has nearly as much to offer as fish oil. We can extrapolate and theorize that flax seed oil should confer a similar benefit, based on its (much lower) omega-3 content, enough to recommend it as an alternative to fish oil for strict vegans, but I would call it clearly second best.

The reference to fish oil lowering von Willebrand factor [vWF] is probably correct, based on the 1987 study at Brown [3] which showed that vWF was significantly lowered by fish oil in type-1 diabetics, who as a group are at increased risk for stroke and heart attack, possibly because of increased vWF, which is known to be increased in first-time ischemic stroke victims, regardless of diabetes, and is a marker of endothelial stress. Perhaps more significantly, triglycerides, which are associated with cardiovascular disease, and which are notoriously elevated in type-2 diabetics, are lowered by fish oil. (This is the only FDA-approved indication for fish-oil, in the form of the eight to ten times more expensive prescription extract Omacor, for treating severe hypertriglyceridemia.)

While bleeding times are slightly increased and platelet activity is decreased by fish oil, there are no demonstrated adverse health outcomes linked to this bleeding. A much more potent anti-platelet drug, low-dose aspirin, increases bleeding much more, but is taken by millions of people with an elevated risk of cardiovascular disease because it is proven to significantly lower overall risk, including that associated with bleeding.

Dr. Peter Everett is a founder of the Dietary Supplement Quality Initiative, sponsor of supplementquality.com

References:
1. Kromhout D, Bosschieter EB, de Lezenne Coulander C. The inverse relation between fish consumption and 20-year mortality from coronary heart disease. N Engl J Med, 1985 May 9;312(19):1205-9.

2. Gruppo Italiano per lo Studio della Sopravvivenza nell'Infarto miocardico. Dietary supplementation with n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids and vitamin E after myocardial infarction: results of the GISSI-Prevenzione trial. Lancet, 1999 Aug 7;354(9177):447-55.

3. Miller ME, Anagnostou AA, Ley B, Marshall P, Steiner M. Effect of fish oil concentrates on hemorheological and hemostatic aspects of diabetes mellitus: a preliminary study. Thromb Res, 1987 Jul 15;47(2):201-14.