(31-10-08) Fish Oil is Better Than Drugs for Preventing Heart Failure

Fish oil supplements appear to work better than a popular cholesterol-reducing drug to help patients with chronic heart failure, according to recently released research.

Researchers gave nearly 3,500 patients a daily omega-3 pill derived from fish oils. Roughly the same number of patients were given placebo pills. Over a four-year period, fewer patients in the group taking the fish oil pills died of heart failure or were admitted to the hospital with the problem.

In a parallel study, the researchers gave nearly 2,300 patients the cholesterol-lowering drug Crestor and another group of close to 2,300 patients placebo pills. After four years, there was little difference in heart failure rates between the groups, but when the two studies were compared they found that fish oil is slightly more effective than Crestor because the oil performed better against a placebo than the drug did.

Chronic heart failure is a condition that occurs when the heart becomes enlarged and cannot pump blood efficiently around the body. Omega-3 fats have long been proven to offer health benefits such as protecting the heart and brain.

Sources: Time August 31, 2008
The Lancet August 31, 2008

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