Plasma omega-3 levels linked to reduced heart failure risk, says recent study

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A recent study¹published in Mayo Clinic Proceedings evaluated the association between plasma omega-3 levels and risk of heart failure (HF). To analyze the relationship between plasma omega-3 levels and HF, researchers for this study used data from 272,000 adults in the UK BioBank, a prospective cohort study of individuals recruited from 2007 – 2010¹. Ultimately, the study found that people with higher levels of marine omega-3 fatty acids had lower incidence of HF.

The results found that¹:

1. As observed after a 13.7 year follow up of participants without HF at baseline, participants in the top 20% of omega-3 levels were 21% less likely to develop HF compared to participants in the bottom 20% of omega-3 levels.
2. In participants with HF at baseline, the risk of death for those in the top 20% of omega-3 levels compared to the bottom 20% was 50% less.

The study concluded that its findings supported the increasing of plasma omega-3 levels could reduce the risk of developing HF, along with reduce the risk of death for those with prevalent HF.

In a statement², William S. Harris, PhD, senior investigator of the study in Mayo Clinic Proceedings, founder and former CEO of OmegaQuant, and president of the Fatty Acid Research Institute (FARI): “This new study by Jawad and colleagues provides powerful evidence that omega-3 fatty acids are protective against the development of heart failure, which is one of the most common causes of hospitalization in the US today. The medical profession needs to take seriously the long-term potential of these simple nutrients to address one of our major health challenges.”

Other studies have provided more insights into the effects of omega-3 supplementation on heart health.

Additionally, a 2024 study³ meta-analysis on randomized controlled trials involving almost 30,000 participants with coronary artery disease concluded that though it did not affect major adverse cardiovascular events or reduce the risk of stroke, omega-3 fatty acids supplementation was effective in reducing incidents of all-cause death, cardiovascular death, myocardial infarction, revascularization, sudden cardiac death, and hospitalization for heart failure or unstable angina pectoris.

A 2021 study⁴ published in Mayo Clinic Proceedings concluded that an updated meta-analysis on 42 randomized control trials involving a total of 150,000 participants indicated that intake of marine omega-3 can be an effective intervention against cardiovascular disease.

References

1. Jawad MA.; O’Keefe, JH.; Tintle, N.; O’Keefe, EL.; Franco, WG.; Djousse, L.; Ryder, N.; Harris, WS. Association of Plasma Omega-3 Levels With Incident Heart Failure and Related Mortalities. Mayo Clinic Proceedings, 2024. DOI: 10.1016/j.mayocp.2024.08.007
2. OmegaQuant. New Study Shows Higher Omega-3 Levels Associated with Reduced Heart Failure Risk & Death, https://omegaquant.com/new-study-shows-higher-omega-3-levels-associated-with-reduced-heart-failure-risk-death/ (accessed Dec 12, 2024).
3. Bernasconi, AA.; Lavie, CJ.; Milani, RV.; Laukkanen, JA. Omega-3 Benefits Remain Strong Post-STRENGTH. Mayo Clinic Proceedings, 2021. DOI: 10.1016/j.mayocp.2021.03.004
4. Chao, T.; Sun, J.; Ge, Y.; Wang, C. Effect of omega-3 fatty acids supplementation on the prognosis of coronary artery disease: A meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials. Nutrition, Metabolism and Cardiovascular Diseases. DOI: 10.1016/j.numecd.2023.10.035