A diet deficient in omega 3 fats is known to cause impaired vision both in animals and people. That is because omega 3 fats are essential for the functioning of the nerve tissues in the brain and since the retina is an extension of the brain, it goes without saying that a deficiency of omega 3 fatty acids will have an effect in the way we see things.
Omega-3 fatty acids and cardiac arrhythmias: prior studies and recommendations for future research: a report from the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute and Office Of Dietary Supplements Omega-3 Fatty Acids and their Role in Cardiac Arrhythmogenesis Workshop.\nLondon B, Albert C, Anderson ME, Giles WR, Van Wagoner DR, Balk E, Billman GE, Chung M, Lands W, Leaf A, McAnulty J, Martens JR, Costello RB, Lathrop DA.\nCirculation. 2007 Sep 4;116(10):e320-35. Review. \nPMID: 17768297
ScienceDaily (Feb. 12, 2009) - According to a recent study, diets rich in omega-3 fatty acids protect the liver from damage caused by obesity and the insulin resistance it provokes. This research should give doctors and nutritionists valuable information when recommending and formulating weight-loss diets and help explain why some obese patients are more likely to suffer some complications associated with obesity. Omega-3 fatty acids can be found in canola oil and fish.
ScienceDaily (Apr. 5, 2009) - Docosahexanoic acid (DHA), an omega-3 fatty acid found in fish oils, has been shown to reduce the size of tumours and enhance the positive effects of the chemotherapy drug cisplatin, while limiting its harmful side effects. The rat experiments provide some support for the plethora of health benefits often ascribed to omega-3 acids.
Prevention of sudden cardiac death with omega-3 fatty acids in patients with coronary heart disease: A meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.\nZhao YT, Chen Q, Sun YX, Li XB, Zhang P, Xu Y, Guo JH.\nAnn Med. 2009 Jan 16:1-10. [Epub ahead of print]\nPMID: 19148838
Lin PY, Su KP.
A meta-analytic review of double-blind, placebo-controlled trials of antidepressant efficacy of omega-3 fatty acids.
J Clin Psychiatry. 2007 Jul;68(7):1056-61.
PMID: 17685742 [PubMed - in process]
Docosahexaenoic acid suppresses arachidonic acid-induced proliferation of LS-174T human colon carcinoma cells.
Habbel P, Weylandt KH, Lichopoj K, Nowak J, Purschke M, Wang JD, He CW, Baumgart DC, Kang JX.
World J Gastroenterol. 2009 Mar 7;15(9):1079-84.
PMID: 19266600
doi: 10.3748/wjg.15.1079.
ScienceDaily (Feb. 11, 2009) - New research from Columbia University Medical Center continues to shed light on the benefits of making fish a staple of any diet.
The benefits of chia seeds outweigh its simple charm as a windowsill plant. All edible seeds are a useful part of our diet, as they offer unsaturated oils, frequently with big amounts of omega-6 and sometimes omega-3.
Wang C, Harris WS, Chung M, Lichtenstein AH, Balk EM, Kupelnick B, Jordan HS, Lau J. \nn-3 Fatty acids from fish or fish-oil supplements, but not \nalpha-linolenic acid, benefit cardiovascular disease outcomes in \nprimary- and secondary-prevention studies: a systematic review. \nAm J Clin Nutr. 2006 Jul;84(1):5-17. Review. \nPMID: 16825676
Dietary supplementation with n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids and vitamin E after myocardial infarction: results of the GISSI-Prevenzione trial. Gruppo Italiano per lo Studio della Sopravvivenza nell'Infarto miocardico.\nLancet. 1999 Aug 7;354(9177):447-55. Erratum in: Lancet 2001 Feb 24;357(9256):642. Lancet. 2007 Jan 13;369(9556):106.\nPMID: 10465168
Mortality and cancer incidence in cohorts of Swedish fishermen and fishermen's wives: updated findings.\nMikoczy Z, Rylander L.\nChemosphere. 2009 Feb;74(7):938-43. Epub 2008 Nov 28.\nPMID: 19041115
Mortality in a cohort with high fish consumption.\nTurunen AW, Verkasalo PK, Kiviranta H, Pukkala E, Jula A, Männistö S, Räsänen R, Marniemi J, Vartiainen T.\nInt J Epidemiol. 2008 Oct;37(5):1008-17. Epub 2008 Jun 25.\nPMID: 18579573
AHA Science Advisory: Lyon Diet Heart Study. Benefits of a Mediterranean-style, National Cholesterol Education Program/American Heart Association Step I Dietary Pattern on Cardiovascular Disease.\nKris-Etherton P, Eckel RH, Howard BV, St Jeor S, Bazzarre TL; Nutrition Committee Population Science Committee and Clinical Science Committee of the American Heart Association.\nCirculation. 2001 Apr 3;103(13):1823-5. \nPMID: 11282918
What causes coronary heart disease or coronary atherosclerotic plaque, this thing that we track with heart scans? \n\nWell, here are a few little-publicized facts about heart disease that you are unlikely to hear from your When's-the-next-stent? cardiologist or the What is there besides statins? primary care doctor. \n\n(Since everybody knows that smoking is a modifiable risk for heart disease that can be readily identified, let's focus on the blood tests that reveal heart disease causes.)