Omega-3 Fatty Acids for Bodybuilders, Athletes, and Active People by Jerry Brainum 5/25

 

 

 

Omega-3 fatty acids gained prominence following a study published in 1971. That study compared the rates of cardiovascular disease in native Inuit and people living in Denmark. The study showed significantly lower rates of cardiovascular disease in the Inuit people compared to the Danes. What was interesting about the study was that the Inuit diet was rich in fat, derived chiefly from marine animals. At the time, fat was starting to get demonized as a major cause of cardiovascular disease, so the lack of this problem in the Inuit was surprising. A careful analysis of the Inuit diet revealed that they consumed more of a specific type of fat, known as Omega-3 fatty acids. The researchers who published this seminal study believed that the larger intake of omega-3 fats compared to the Danish intake made a difference in the incidence of cardiovascular disease. The findings of this study sparked an ongoing interest in omega-3 fatty acids that continues to this day.

However, there were some notable problems with the original omega-3 study. For one, the notion that Inuits have lower rates of cardiovascular disease was based on hospital records rather than direct examination. It was, in effect, second-hand data. Later studies of Inuit people showed that while they did show lower rates of one type of cardiovascular disease, the incidence of other types of CVD was about the same in the Inuit as it was for the Danes. And 45 years after the original study was published, it turned out that the Inuit people have a genetic mutation that allows them to handle fat intake differently than other people. This genetic quirk likely evolved due to the consistently high fat intake characteristic of Inuit diets. The main contribution of the Inuit study was that it brought the importance of omega-3 fatty acids into public awareness.

More recently, omega-3 fatty acids have been controversial due to doubts cast upon their preventive effects against the onset of cardiovascular disease (CVD).  While many studies, including the original Inuit study, demonstrate that consuming omega-3 fats offers a degree of protection against cardiovascular disease (CVD), other studies conclude that the effects are either minor or nonexistent. What's curious about this is that no one argues that omega-3 fat shows beneficial effects in at least one aspect of CVD risk. This is elevated triglycerides (TG). Triglycerides are a type of fat, and in the past, blood triglycerides were thought to play only a minor role in the development of cardiovascular disease (CVD). However, it's now known that having higher blood levels of TGs is associated with elevations in low-density lipoprotein, or LDL. LDL is considered a significant player in causing atherosclerosis, a harbinger of future heart attacks and strokes. While a few drugs can decrease blood TG levels, omega-3 is especially effective for this purpose, lowering elevated TGs . . .