News today.

[Cavalierrubie]

Has anyone heard the latest news from “Bristol live” that taking Omega 3 fatty acids and fish oil supplements is a risk factor for AF and stroke? I personally don’t take this supplement because it interacts with warfarin, but thought those that do might like to investigate.

[jeanjeannie50]

It's long been discussed on this forum that Omega 3 and fish oil are taboo for people with AF. Not sure I've heard about the stroke risk. It's always good to be reminded though. So thank you.

Jean

[Cavalierrubie in reply to jeanjeannie50]

It stated that if you don’t already have AF it is a risk factor also stroke. I didn’t know it was old news. I have dry eyes and the eye specialist told me to take it a couple of years ago. I used to take it before l was diagnosed with AF so wondering ……..? Sorry to bore you with this again.🙃

[jeanjeannie50 in reply to Cavalierrubie]

Don't be silly, lots of new people on the forum need to be made aware and it's good for all of us to have a reminder. We must always keep repeating warnings that we discover. I need things drumming into me and I'm sure others do too. Keep making us aware please. x

[Samazeuilh2 in reply to jeanjeannie50]

There was an article in yesterday’s Guardian on this: “Fish oil may increase risk of heart conditions and stroke, study finds.” Extract: “Published in the journal BMJ Medicine, the study found that for those with no known cardiovascular disease at the start of the monitoring period, regular use of fish oil supplements was associated with a 13% heightened risk of developing atrial fibrillation and a 5% heightened risk of having a stroke. But for patients with heart disease at the beginning of the study period, fish oil supplements were associated with a 15% lower risk of progressing from atrial fibrillation to a heart attack, and a 9% lower risk of progressing from heart failure to death.” So everything depends on individual cardiac history.

[jeanjeannie50 in reply to Samazeuilh2]

My mum used to give we children a dose of cod liver oil and malt when we were young. I hope my AF doesn't stem from that. I think at that time it was thought to be beneficial for children. Hmm, are there things that we take in pill form now that aren't good for us. I think I'm going to gradually start to reduce the vitamins I take.

[Samazeuilh2 in reply to jeanjeannie50]

Yes, I was given cod liver oil as a child too. Scientists advise getting minerals and vitamins from foods rather than supplements. So I think you are right to cut back on them. The only supplements I take at the moment are magnesium and B12 for occasional migraines. I’ve stopped taking vitamin D as a GP said it was unnecessary if you have a normal diet and go outdoors regularly.

[Cavalierrubie in reply to Samazeuilh2]

I was taking vitamin B12 until my recent blood test which showed vitamin B12 was too high and my GP has told me to stop. I was surprised as l thought B vitamins were water soluble and are expelled from the body. I also take magnesium but use BetterYou spray as tablets upset my digestion. I am beginning to question all these supplements and l am going to concentrate on nutrition from food. Take care.

[Rainfern]

Yes, my EP spoke of this at a public talk he gave on arrhythmias and their treatment, 2 years ago. I still make sure I get enough omega oils by munching pumpkin seeds (gorgeous roasted with a touch of soy sauce) and copious use of extra virgin olive oil (just one reason why majority of my clothes are from charity shops!)

[Samazeuilh2 in reply to Rainfern]

Yes, pumpkin seeds are a superfood. They don’t taste too bad.

[ainslie]

I read that report and somehow I wasn’t convinced by the contents, maybe it was badly reported, probably best to read the full paper if anyone has a copy?

I wonder is it the Omega 3 OR excess Omega 3, I wonder if they tested them to see how much Omega 3 was in their system. I had my Omega 3 tested years ago and it was well over range due to eating fish most days. It always surprises me that we all take supplements and vits etc without testing to see if we actually need them, and then we should monitor levels on vits etc to avoid excess.

[sunlovah in reply to ainslie]

Where did you get the omega test from please? I eat mainly fish and chicken breast.

[Finvola]

Yesterday's Guardian had an article on this report and the details of the trials done.

Search the Guardian online for 'Fish oil may increase risk of heart conditions and stroke' to read full article.

[BobD Volunteer]

Excuse me for being cynical but in my 79 years everything from peanut butter to tomatoes real butter to coffee has been said to be carcinogenic or very bad for you at some time and then the next year its "oh no its very good for you." Everything in moderation .

[Cavalierrubie in reply to BobD]

Yes, they always seem to be scaremongering l agree. I sometimes wonder how true the media is, and what proof they have and how they obtained their information. Journalists are always looking for some sensational story to fill the news and earn their salary, but it always seems doom and gloom.

[jeanjeannie50 in reply to BobD]

So true Bob. I can remember when we were told that the skins of baked potatoes were said to cause problems in unborn foetuses. Eggs were bad too at one time. What was the name of the woman who told us that, can you remember?

[Cavalierrubie in reply to jeanjeannie50]

I can answer that Jean. Edwina Currie the Conservative MP.

[jeanjeannie50 in reply to Cavalierrubie]

That's her, thank you.

[Cavalierrubie in reply to jeanjeannie50]

❤️

[bean_counter27]

"Journalists are always looking for some sensational story"

Editors are always looking to sensationalise stories.... and as they say, don't let the truth get in the way of a good story.

[CDreamer]

And yet the latest Zoe podcast with Prof Philip Calder, Southampton Uni, specialist in researching nutrition is stressing the importance of having enough fish based Omega 3’s to lessen inflammation.

I stopped taking fish oil supplements but do try to eat 2 portions of fatty fish such as salmon, mackerel, sardines a week because I believe that we should get our nutrition from our food, not little capsules.

I think we can get too reductionist about what is or not ‘good’ for us and as Bob says it is always goes in waves of yes it is, not it isn’t dependent upon what is being studied and by whom.

Moderation is key.

[Cavalierrubie in reply to CDreamer]

My grandparents never had the opportunity to take supplements as not readily available in their generation. My grandmother lived to be 96 and my grandfather 92. My mother never took supplements and lived until 94. You are correct CDreamer that we should get our nutrition from food and concentrate on a balanced diet as my family all did. The world has gone crazy with health, fitness and supplements. Maybe we are doing more harm than good and becoming mentally obsessed, or the researchers are.

[sunlovah in reply to Cavalierrubie]

Don't think that they ate the rubbish way back then,that's around now.

[jeanjeannie50 in reply to sunlovah]

Yes and a lot of vegetables were grown in the back garden. Now they're presented to us well sprayed to keep caterpillars/maggots off and pristine clean.

[Cavalierrubie in reply to jeanjeannie50]

When we grew our own vegetables they contained more nutrients. Selenium is one. They were also fresh with (muck) on. You had a sink full of mud.

[jeanjeannie50 in reply to Cavalierrubie]

I feel sure that the mud on potatoes helped them to keep for a lot longer. The scrubbed clean ones we get now barely keep for two weeks.

I've said many times on this forum that my dad was in to healthy eating long before it was fashionable. Going back to when I was 2 or 3 years old I can remember him burying sewage from a bucket toilet into the veg garden. Years later I asked him why this wasn't done now and his answer was there were too many chemicals in it. I dare say that if we all ate healthily now, then that could still be done and there would be no need for it to enter rivers or the sea.

[108cat in reply to jeanjeannie50]

Thank you Jeanjeannie and Cavalierrubie for bringing this up. This forum is endlessly helpful and informative. I'll ditch my Omega 3 and focus on flaxseed, chia seeds, and pumpkin seeds which I love and eat a lot of anyway. I'm trying to get back into whole foods too. Jeanjeannie you're right about old fashioned farming and mud on potatoes .... so many beneficial things come from bacteria in the earth like B12 and antibiotics ... etc.

[southkorea]

I have taken fish oil with warfarin and now apixiban for years!

[DawnTX]

I’m not sure about you but I talk to my doctor. too much too many different thoughts from everyone talk to the man that keeps you alive. We are not doctors.