June 28, 2016 — NEW YORK — Fish used to be called “brain food”, but it may be heart food instead.
Omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids, when obtained through foods in the diet, appear to reduce the risk of fatal heart attack, death due to coronary artery disease (CAD), and sudden cardiac death by about 10 percent, according to new research.
The study, published in JAMA Internal Medicine, looked at the three forms of these fatty acids: α-linolenic acid (ALA), docosapentaenoic acid (DPA), and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), which have all shown beneficial effects on things like blood pressure and oxygen demand by heart muscle cells.
Some may reduce the likelihood of the dangerous heart rhythms during a period of reduced blood flow to heart muscle cells (what happens during heart attacks).
Researchers at Stanford and Tufts University studied data on 45,637 patients from more than 15 countries who had not had previous coronary artery disease.