fish oil and omega 3 better than statins, lipitor?
Dear All, As many of you may know, Tim Russert, host of Meet the Press, passed away recently from sudden cardiac death. I wanted to take this time to share with you a little information about sudden cardiac death, and a prevention strategy that may be of help to you, your family or friend -- which is that fish oil, 1 g of EPA and DHA a day can reduce the risk of sudden cardiac death greatly. Here is more information on sudden cardiac death: www.americanheart.org American Heart Association recommends 1 g of EPA and DHA if you have heart disease: www.americanheart.org In the video, I refer to several different studies; 1) This is the big 1999 fish oil study that I mentioned www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov 2) Here is the link to the review showing that fish oil beats out statins in reducing risk of death: archinte.ama-assn.org 3) Here is a review article talking about benefits vs. risks of fish jama.ama-assn.org More information on primary and secondary endpoints: www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov Here is the link to my website: www.bostonmedicalstudent.wordpress.com ______ PS I wanted to point out something important: that the opinions expressed in this post are not necessarily those of Harvard Medical School, its affiliated institutions, or Harvard University. Also, I'm just a medical student, so my posts are hopefully conversation starters, but only conversation starters — not medical advice. If my posts intrigue you, please read more about the topic and discuss about it with your doctor. I ...
Recent Articles & Videos
- Flaxseed Oil is an Important Supplement For Omega 3 Fatty Acids
- 3Ls – How do you convert ALA’s to Fish Oil?
- Fish Oil Omega-3 – most important health supplement
- NutraGenics Omega 3 Fish Oil 420 DHA 280 EPA
- Myths about Omega Fatty Acids (Should You take omega 3?)
Pages
Our Recommendation
November 2nd, 2009 - 06:36
Krill Oil is superior to fish oil because it contains phospholipids, antioxidants ( more than 47 times the levels found in fish oil!), and omega-3′s bonded together in a way that keeps them safe from oxidation, and makes them easily absorbed in your body.
/watch?v=kZKis8EBzWM
December 3rd, 2009 - 18:38
Jeff be very precise and don’t overclaim no matter how convinced you are Patrick Riordan MB MD JD LLM
December 22nd, 2009 - 06:30
i like to take it for my brain health smocking weed and drinking alcohol and stuff destryed my brian cells.
December 23rd, 2009 - 08:03
@djevdogg I am suffering from HBP and High Cholesterol – My HBP was 181/120 – I tried diet and it shifted to 160/100 which was done also by exercising – Today I went at the doctor who gave me some tablets – I tried Lipitor which affected my muscles and I cannot climb stairs without holding onto something or someone –
I willlike to find out what is Krill Oil and where can I find it
Thanks
Sheila
December 30th, 2009 - 05:59
You need to take 3 grams of epa/dha omega 3 oil a day to get your blood triglicerides down AND to get blood diluted to prevent a clot you should add a babay aspirin and a couple cayenne pepper capsules…..For Plaque build-up in your arteries, you need to take 1.5 grams to 2 grams of Niacin a day… For blood pressure, consider Lisinopril which just causes your blood vessels to get a little bigger…For sugar, CUT carbs and walk NO FASTER than 2.0mph since pressure is so high!!!
December 30th, 2009 - 06:05
Fish Oil is the ONLY thing you can put in your mouth to decrease triglicerides. Triglicerides are fats in blood and probably worse than cholesterol since we need the cholesterol to make all our hormones. Decreased triglicerides means LOWER Blood pressure, and your blood will be flowing so freely that try pocking a finger after being on them and you’ll bleed/bleed/bleed so it is nearlly impossible to get a clot that would cause a Cardian Infarction!
December 30th, 2009 - 06:13
If you are worried about getting a heart attack in the future, then I suggest you start Googling the most Powerfull thing-CAPSAICIN- known to man that will save your heart…try these searches: ‘capsaicin heart attack’ or ‘sciencedaily heart attack capsaicin’ or ‘Hot peppers prostate cancer’ and be AMAZED! Find the Research performed at University of Cincinatti on capsaicin heart attack. Control mice died and Capsaicin mice had just 15% of heart damage after being Inflicted with Heart Attack!
December 31st, 2009 - 01:20
Thanks very much for your help – I will try to get the Omega 3 Oil and the Baby Aspirin also the Cayenne Pepper I can get – I will also like to find out what is Krill Oil – Also what is Lisinopril
Sheila
January 23rd, 2010 - 15:48
my dr has me taking lipator. my cholesterol level is 328. i am
concerned with taking this. i am wondering if i start taking
omega three and watch my diet if this would be a better alternative.
February 7th, 2010 - 02:52
What do you think about taking 600 ml of Red Rice Yeast with 1000 iu of omega 3 fish oil and Coq10.
Lorraine
February 15th, 2010 - 22:21
the good thing about this oil is that at the very least,,it couldn’t hurt.
February 27th, 2010 - 02:44
I truly believe that statins caused my father to have a stroke. At 75 his doctor said he had some plaque in his arteries (never effected him from what I saw) and prescribed a statin. After that it was all downhill, muscle wasting, weight loss, pain, eventually onto oxygen, amnesia, dementia and eventually a fatal bleeding stroke at 79.
March 12th, 2010 - 14:58
Thanks for taking the time to share this valuable information with the Youtube community. It is good to see an M.D. willing to buck the Big Pharma juggernaut. FYI I stopped Lipitor( painful side effect of muscle pain) a year and a half ago and took to taking 2 grams F O daily. Great results. Arthritis pain gone and significantly lower cholesterol than before I started F O. Good luck in your studies. The M.D. profession needs more who care about patients welfare and less about $.
March 13th, 2010 - 23:22
lorraine, red rice yeast is a “statin” just like Lipitor, etc. It will cause your liver to cease release of cholesterol thus you will have poor connective tissue production causing muscle and spine pain. Cholesterol is the prime compound in the makeup of hormones, bile, etc. and is not the prime culprit but an unwitting accomplice in cardiovascular disease. Increase essential fatty acids (Omega family of oils), Co Q-10, etc. Research for your health Lorraine.
April 7th, 2010 - 01:21
@usmedstudent my hdl was 33 ,ldl 85,total cholesterol 195, total triglicerides 330 will fish oil help raise hdl and lower triglicerides
April 7th, 2010 - 01:24
@usmedstudent also what if its herreditary, will its still helpi take 1250 mg three times a day is at good im 39 years old
May 7th, 2010 - 02:34
I recently stopped taking zocor due to terrible muscle aches and pain and now take fish oil and eat oatmeal every day to help with cholesterol.I was wondering if you know of anything I could take to help repair thr muscle damage caused by my statin?I have been off statins for 6 weeks and still cannot even work out like I used to do every day.Please…..any advice?
May 7th, 2010 - 19:50
What do you reccomend as an overall multivitamin? or would you rather reccomend a combination of B complex C complex etc.
May 24th, 2010 - 10:01
@azhorntoad
Changing your diet is essential to lowering cholesterol and preventing cardiovascular disease. Either you’re consuming large amounts of cholesterol or your liver’s cholesterol-regulating mechanisms are not working well. Lipitor is an effective statin drug, but there are also natural alternatives which can work just as well (including Omega-3 essential fatty acids). My recommendations to you are the following:
*Change your diet (to be continued)…
May 24th, 2010 - 10:05
@azhorntoad
Eat low glyemic load foods, avoid cholesterol and consume more fruits and vegetables.
*Consider natural alternatives to statin drugs. You can take red yeast rice and fish oil alongside Lipitor with no interaction. A study in 2008 compared a group of patients taking red yeast rice and fish oil to a group taking Zocor (simvastatin, similar to what you take) and found cholesterol fell 42.4 percent in the red yeast rice group as compared to 39.6 percent in the Zocor group. (continued)
May 24th, 2010 - 10:10
@azhorntoad
…My suggestion is not to drop Lipitor for red yeast rice and fish oil but to add these supplements alongside your statin medication. Again, they do not interact. You can take 600-900 mg of red yeast rice twice daily, and up to even 5 grams of anti-inflammatory Omega-3 fish oil daily in divided doses. You can research many studies proving the benefits of both of these supplements. Other supplements to take include plant sterols (1800 mg 2 daily) and Vitamin E (200 IU 2x daily)….
May 24th, 2010 - 10:15
@azhorntoad
All of these supplements will help bring your cholesterol into a healthy range. Lastly, I must mention that you should also supplement with coenzyme Q10. Statin drugs deplete the body of CoQ10, which is necessary to maintain mitochondrial health. I recommend 50-150 mg twice daily or 50 mg twice daily of ubiquinol (the activated form of CoQ10). Again, it is essential to change your diet to maintain healthy cholesterol and triglyceride levels. Speak to your doctor about these things.
May 24th, 2010 - 10:19
@lorrainetoyou
Lorraine: You should take 600-900 mg of red yeast rice twice daily if you are seeking its cholesterol-lowering benefits. It naturally contains small amounts of lovastatin, an active ingredient in a statin drug called Mevacor. You should take anywhere from 2-5 grams of Omega-3 fatty acids, preferably in the form of EPA and DHA. Nordic Naturals’ Ultimate Omega formula is quite good. CoQ10 is an excellent supplement but is not used to affect cholesterol levels.
May 24th, 2010 - 10:23
@usmedstudent
It is also important to know that the body converts ALA into EPA and DHA. This conversion is very inefficient, so it is wiser to take fish oil with its EPA and DHA.
June 7th, 2010 - 08:23
great work, we need doctors like yu