Fish oil pills may help after heart attack, specialists say
Doctors may want to consider prescribing fish oil pills to heart attack survivors and patients with chronic heart failure, new recommendations from the American Heart Association suggest.
Fish oil may help extend the lives of those patients, the heart association said.
On the other hand, the supplements cannot be recommended for preventing heart problems in the first place, said Dr. David Siscovick, lead author of the report. Thats because no clinical trials have tested fish oils effects in people who are free of heart disease.
Meanwhile, a few trials have given fish oil to people at increased risk of heart disease -- because of diabetes or high cholesterol, for example. All but one has come up empty.
Many people take fish oil hoping to prevent heart disease, Siscovick acknowledged. But theres a lack of evidence that it does.
Fish oil is rich in omega-3 fatty acids, which are generally thought to be heart-healthy. Oily fish -- like salmon, tuna and mackerel -- are good sources, but many people turn to supplements.
One study found that roughly 8 percent of U.S. adults -- nearly 19 million people -- had used fish oil in the last month, according to the heart association.
The new recommendations are based on a review of 15 clinical trials that tested the effects of fish oil on heart health. Thirteen were conducted after 2002 -- the last time the heart association came out with recommendations on fish oil. We felt like the time was right to revisit this and review the evidence, Siscovick said. We wanted to help guide doctors, because patients frequently have questions about fish oil.
Not everyone thinks the new recommendations are helpful, though. Frankly, I cant support this. I think its a disservice to the public, said Dr. Steven Nissen, chairman of cardiovascular medicine at the Cleveland Clinic, in Ohio.
HealthDay
