Victim of a Vast Right-Wing Conspiracy!!!

[Suave]

I've heard a lot that eskimos have very low bad cholesterol for some reason.

[Suave]

http://www.highnorth.no/Library/Culture/or-ea-me.htm

The provisional results of the new studies in Greenland have shown that atherosclerosis is far less widespread among the Inuit than elsewhere in the world. But there are also great individual differences. Inuit who have lived on the diet of the western world have developed atherosclerosis just as in Europe and the USA. But a seventy-year-old who has lived on the traditional Inuit diet of seal and whale has coronary arteries that are just as elastic as those of a twenty-year- old Dane.

[Suave]

Originally posted by Viking
What were your symptoms then?

http://www.hitechcreations.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=190181

[Viking]

Thanks.

And after ALL THAT the spanking new hospital didn't find anything?!

[AquaShrimp]

Originally posted by Toad
Can you cite any reputable studies that support that statement?

I've seen studies that show fish oil does many good things. I have yet to see one that clearly shows it lowers cholesterol levels.

Fish oils and plasma lipid and lipoprotein metabolism in humans: a critical review
WS Harris
Department of Medicine, University of Kansas Medical Center, Kansas City 66103.



Epidemiological studies in Greenland Eskimos led to the hypothesis that marine oils rich in n-3 fatty acids (also referred to as omega (omega)- 3 fatty acids) are hypolipidemic and ultimately antiatherogenic. Metabolically controlled trials in which large amounts of fish oil were fed to normal volunteers and hyperlipidemic patients showed that these fatty acids (FAs) are effective at lowering plasma cholesterol and triglyceride levels.

[rpm]

Originally posted by Viking
Thanks.

And after ALL THAT the spanking new hospital didn't find anything?!

Yup. I admit I was kicking and screaming bloody murder to let me go the last time, but they missed the call. Just proves my theory on the quality of care at the shiny new local facility.

[Scherf]

Jeez rpm!

Life is Timing, man. Congrats on getting a second chance.

Put down the smokes. Step away from the burger. Feel the sun on your face. Repeat.

[Shifty]

I'll probably never agree with you about Kinky. However I do hope your health improves. You're one the guys that makes the reading fun on this BBS.

[Toad]

From the Mayo Clinic site:

Fish and omega-3 fatty acids

Studies in the 1970s showed that Greenland Eskimos had a lower rate of heart disease than did other individuals living in Greenland at the same time. Analysis of dietary differences between the groups showed that the Eskimos ate less saturated fat and more omega-3 fatty acids found in fish and whale and seal meat.

Research since that time has supported the heart-healthy benefits of eating fish. If you can't dine with the Eskimos, other good sources of omega-3 fatty acids include flaxseed, walnuts, canola oil and soybean oil.

Omega-3 fatty acids are noted for their triglyceride-lowering effect, but they also help the heart in other ways such as reducing blood pressure and the risk of blood clots. In people who have already had heart attacks, fish oil — or omega-3 fatty acids — significantly reduces the risk of sudden death.

Doctors recommend eating at least two servings of fish a week. The highest levels of omega-3 fatty acids are in mackerel, lake trout, herring, sardines, albacore tuna and salmon. However, to maintain the heart-healthy benefits of fish, bake or grill it.

From the National Institute of Health:

Minneapolis Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Minneapolis.

STUDY OBJECTIVE: To determine the effects of fish oil supplementation on plasma cholesterol in middle-aged men with isolated hypercholesterolemia.

DESIGN: Randomized double-blind placebo-controlled (safflower oil) two-period crossover trial with 12-week treatment periods.

SETTING: Outpatient general medicine clinic at a university-affiliated Veterans Affairs hospital. PATIENTS: Thirty-eight men with plasma cholesterol between 5.68 and 7.76 mmol/L (220 to 300 mg/dL), triglyceride levels less than 3.39 mmol/L (300 mg/dL), and free of coexisting diseases.

INTERVENTIONS: Fish oil and placebo (safflower oil) supplementation. After basal measurements and a 4-week lead-in period, twenty 1-g capsules of either fish oil or placebo oil were provided for 12 weeks (period 1). After a 4-week washout phase participants then received the other oil for an additional 12 weeks (period 2).

MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: Blood was drawn at the beginning and end of each study period and analyzed for levels of total cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol, triglycerides, apolipoprotein A1, and apolipoprotein B. Low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol was calculated using the Friedewald equation. Total and LDL cholesterol increased from the before treatment values by 4.8% and 9.1%, respectively, after ingestion of fish oil. Compared with placebo, LDL cholesterol was significantly higher (4.5 compared with 4.1 mmol/L, P = 0.01) and triglycerides lower (1.3 compared with 1.8 mmol/L, P = 0.01) after fish oil. Total and HDL cholesterol and apolipoprotein A1 and B levels did not differ.

CONCLUSIONS: Fish oil supplements do not lower plasma cholesterol levels in middle-aged men with hypercholesterolemia without elevated triglycerides. They should not be recommended as a method to lower plasma cholesterol in these patients.
PMID: 2683921 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

From the Cleveland Clinic, one of the top heart hospitals in the US; a list of benefits of Fish Oil. Note that cholesterol lowering is not one of them.

   *  Reduces blood clot formation. Omega-3 fatty acids act as a natural anticoagulant by altering the ability of platelets in your blood to clump together.

    * Inhibits the growth of plaque. Omega-3 fatty acids help keep the lining of the arteries smooth and clear of damage that can lead to the thickening and hardening of the arteries.

    * Decreases triglycerides and very low-density lipoprotein (VLDL). High triglyceride values and VLDL cholesterol are associated with increased risk for heart disease. Omega-3 fatty acids decrease the rate at which these two substances are produced in the liver.

    * May increase levels of the good cholesterol, HDL. Through their mechanism in lowering triglyceride levels, omega-3 fatty acid intake may increase high-density lipoprotein (HDL). HDL is considered to protect against the development of heart disease.

    * Acts as an anti-inflammatory agent. The development of atherosclerosis (hardening of the arteries) is thought to involve your body's inflammatory response. Omega-3 fatty acids reduce the production of substances that are released during the inflammatory response and in doing so, prevent substances from accumulating and sticking to the lining of the arteries.

    * May lower blood pressure. Several studies have examined the effect of omega-3 fatty acids on blood pressure. Those who eat fish tend to have lower incidence of high blood pressure.

I can add that from personal experience over the last 4 years I have noticed no drop in cholesterol despite experimenting extensively with varying levels of fish oil, up to six grams of EPA/DHA daily.

Fish oil is beneficial but lowering cholesterol levels is not one of the benefits.

I think the confusion arises because substituting fish for meat WILL reduce you cholesterol..because fish is better than meat in that regard.

Or, as the UofC Berkeley Wellness Letter puts it:

Does fish oil lower elevated cholesterol?

Yes, according to some studies; no, according to others. If you substitute fish for meat (or for other sources of saturated fat), you will lower your blood cholesterol. But the same would happen if you replaced the meat with beans or other foods low in saturated fat. Thus, when researchers control for saturated fat intake, the effect of fish on cholesterol often turns out to be minimal, at best.

[eagl]

Regarding fish oil...

There are some side effects to taking concentrated doses of fish oil but for most people they are inconsequential unless you are taking very large doses.  In general, fish oil is probably a good thing but here are a few tidbits I dug up when I tried out fish oil as a supplement a couple years ago.

BTW, many fish oil sellers recommend a very high "dose" that probably doesn't help.  In fact, very high fish oil doses can be bad.  If nothing else, fish oil contains trace mercury just like any other seafood.

Some fish oil issues:

"Fish oil" pills come from many sources, and many fish oil pills actually contain a high percentage of fatty acids from seaweed instead of fish.  No biggie, except that now you're gambling with mercury content.  Some more expensive fish oil sellers specifically use nothing but pure fish squeezings.  Read the label if you want real fish oil and not seaweed oil.

Fish oil is a migraine trigger for me.  That's a bad thing for a pilot.

Fish oil gives some people vivid dreams when they start taking it.  YMMV.

Fish oil in high dosages can mess with your metabolism and production of certain neurochemicals.  Some guys say this is a good thing, but the point is that if you take too much of anything, you're going to mess with your metabolism (duh).  The guy who does the "zone" diets (basically a balanced diet where you get most of your carbs from veggies instead of processed grains) is also a lipidologist who claims high dose fish oil is good for you.  A quick google search should turn up both his research and the opinions of naysayers.  Again, the point is if you take too much of anything, you're risking side effects.

[Suave]

Yep fish oils don't help, what you need is sea mammal blubber.

They should genetically engineer whales or seals that get only as big as salmon and propogate just as fast.

[JB88]

curiously, and i hope this isn't rude to ask, but how old are you RPM?

[straffo]

Originally posted by Toad
Can you cite any reputable studies that support that statement?

I've seen studies that show fish oil does many good things. I have yet to see one that clearly shows it lowers cholesterol levels.

If I'm not mistaken it's the phytosterol that lower the cholesterol, because it's  structurally close to the cholesterol and so it's absorbed preferably by the intestine.

[Arlo]

Get well soon. And meh .... DFW is mostly brainwashed already. But hey ... next time they may kill you ... so you better be careful.

Again .... may your health improve.

[Slash27]

Originally posted by rpm
Yup. I admit I was kicking and screaming bloody murder to let me go the last time, but they missed the call. Just proves my theory on the quality of care at the shiny new local facility.

Geez man, glad you're still kicking  Where is this new hospital? Decatur?