-
Is fish oil good for heart health?
I'm 38 years old and I want to take better came of my heart. I have heart disease in my family and I've realized that I haven't been taking care of myself in the best way. Should I take fish oil? Does it help heart health?
5 Answers
Yes, and yes. But you must do more than that. You need a cholesterol check, may be take an aspirin. The best person to tell what you need is your doctor.
Heart health has many layers. It is not as simple as fish oil. Proper food combinations, best time of day for different foods and your personal food enjoyment is paramount for heart health. Not to mention movement and strength training.
No
Fish oil doesn't hurt but it's not the best way to go about taking care of your heart. First you should get a thorough check-up by your physician and see if you have any risk factors for heart disease.
This includes a thorough physical exam with any additional tests as indicated. The major risk factors for coronary heart disease, that is hardening of the arteries or atherosclerosis, are diabetes, smoking, family history of coronary artery disease at a young age (less than 60 or so), hypertension, and cholesterol level. The first steps to take better care of your heart are eating properly and exercising regularly. Rest and adequate sleep and avoiding unnecessary stress are important ways to improve your heart's well-being.
A good internist should be able to address all these issues with you.
Prescription “fish oils” can be beneficial if you have elevated triglycerides. The most important thing for you to do is to have your lipids (cholesterol and triglycerides) checked. You should also have your blood pressure checked regularly, and get a physical exam with a baseline EKG. It would be helpful to know WHY other family members had heart problems. Was it due to an abnormal rhythm? Was it due to a structural defect? Was it due to high cholesterol? These thing can be familial. One example is “long QT syndrome” which can cause sudden death due to abnormal rhythm. Of course it would be useless to threat that with “fish oil” since fish oil primarily is prescribed for high triglycerides, not abnormal heart rhythms. I do not routinely recommend fish oil, though having a diet with a couple of servings of a fatty fish each week would be good. I suggest avoiding smoking (or any drugs including marijuana which increases heart attacks) eating a lower carb diet with fish and whole grains, maintain a healthy weight, exercise regularly, and go to your doctor to be evaluated for your personal risk profile.