What Doctors Don't Tell YouWe all know that fatty fish and supplements containing omega-3 fatty acids can help prevent a second, and perhaps fatal, heart attack – but researchers have now found that the same diet can also help healthy people live longer too.
Researchers from Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston tracked 22,071 men, who had no history of heart problems, for 17 years and discovered that those who had high blood levels of long-chain omega-3 fatty acids, found in fatty fish, were far less likely to suffer sudden death.
The authors point out that a fatal heart attack is usually the first experienced by people with no previous history of cardiac problems, so a diet rich in fatty fish or omega-3 supplements is a necessary preventative (N Engl J Med, 2002; 346: 1113-8).
Maryon Stewart
Daniel Redwood DC
Tom Ferguson MD