Reduction of Plasma Lipids, Lipoproteins, and Apoproteins by Dietary Fish Oils in Patients with Hypertriglyceridemia

I thought I’d share the following study from 1985 for a couple of reasons.

1. As I alluded to in a post a couple of days ago, 7 Reasons For Eating More Saturated Fat, despite academic articles beginning to be published to contrats the commonly held belief that saturated fat is bad for you, supported by high profile MDs, the American Heart Association is still recommending “lowering intake of saturated fat and replacing it with unsaturated fats, especially polyunsaturated fats, will lower the incidence of CVD (cardiovascular disease)”
2. The most widely prescribed drugs in the UK are cholesterol-lowering statins, with 16% of men and 12% of women taking them.  Like all medications, statins can cause side effects.  Those that up to 1 in 10 people) include nosebleeds, sore throat, non-allergic rhinitis, headache, nausea, digestive system problems, muscle and joint pain, increased blood sugar level (hyperglycaemia), an increased risk of diabetes. 
   
   Considering those who are prescribed statins usually have to take them for the rest of their lives, it is worth looking for alternative ways of lower cholesterol on the blood.
   
   ncidently, the other most commonly prescribed medications in the UK are medications used to treat high blood pressure, such as ACE inhibitors, painkillers, including non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) such as diclofenac.  Omega-3 fish oil consumption has been shown to help lower blood pressure and have anti-inflammatory effects.

Beverley E. Phillipson, M.D., Douglas W. Rothrock, M.D., William E. Connor, M.D., William S. Harris, Ph.D., and D. Roger Illingworth, M.D., Ph.D.

Abstract

Dietary fish oils, which are rich in omega-3 fatty acids, have been reported to reduce plasma lipid levels in normolipidemic subjects.  We examined the effects of fish oil in 20 hypertriglyceridemic patients: 10 with Type IIb hyperlipidemia and 10 with Type V. These patients were put on three diets differing primarily in fatty acid composition and fat content. The control diet contained a fatty acid mixture typical of a low-fat therapeutic diet (ratio of polyunsaturated to saturated fat, 1.4), the fish-oil diet contained omega-3 fatty acids, and the vegetable-oil diet was rich in the omega-6 fatty acid, linoleic acid. Each diet was followed for four weeks.

In the Type llb group, the fish-oil diet led to decreases in both plasma cholesterol (-27 per cent) and triglyceride (-64 per cent), as compared with the control diet. Very-low-density lipoproteins (VLDLs) were also reduced markedly. The vegetable-oil diet had much less effect. With fish oil, the Type V group had marked decreases in total cholesterol and triglyceride levels (-45 and -79 per cent, respectively). VLDL levels were dramatically lowered, as were apoprotein E levels.

The vegetable-oil diet (unlike the fish-oil diet) produced a rapid and significant rise in plasma triglyceride levels. We conclude that fish oils and fish may be useful components of diets for the treatment of hypertriglyceridemia. (N Engl J Med 1985; 312:1210–6.)

Get your good oils,
Scott

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