NEW YORK (Reuters Health) -
In elderly people, omega-3
fatty acids contained in fish and soy oil increase a measure of
heart-healthiness called heart rate variability, a small study
indicates.
Taking a daily fish or soy oil supplement may therefore
reduce the risk of developing irregular heart rhythm or
succumbing to sudden cardiac death.
Lead investigator Dr. Fernando Holguin, at Emory University
School of Medicine in Atlanta, and colleagues followed 52
people aged 60 or older who were randomly assigned to take one
of the oil supplements, given as 1-gram capsules twice daily
for 6 months.
The heart rate variability of the participants was measured
every other day.
As the team reports in the medical journal Chest, fish oil
supplementation increased average total variability from 3.26
units prior to supplementation to 3.54 afterwards. Soy oil
increased the measure from 3.16 to 3.28.
"Our study group showed improvements in heart function in
as little as 2 weeks," Holguin comments in a press release.
Some participants reported discomfort with the supplements.
Belching was reported by 41 percent in the fish oil group and
16 percent in the soy oil group. Corresponding rates for nausea
were 12.5 percent and 8 percent.
Holguin's group recommends omega-3 fatty acids supplements
derived from either soy oil or fish oil "in conjunction with
other factors known to increase heart rate variability such as
exercise, weight loss, stress reduction, and restoration of
normal sleep" to improve heart health.
SOURCE: Chest, April 2005.
