A group of Danish researchers have published the results of a new study which suggests that the Omega-3 fatty acids found in fish may not be quite as effective against combatting heart disease as previously thought.

After looking into the diets of over 3,000 people they have found that men who consumed a lot of Omega 3 fatty acids were not  significantly less likely over time to develop ischemic heart disease than people who consumed less of the nutrients. But the study also found that women who ate more Omega-3 were far less prone to developing heart disease.

The study was carried out by the National Institute of Public Health at the University of Southern Denmark, in Copenhagen, which said eating Omega-3 did have marginal benefits for men but the difference between those who did not eat a lot of oily fish, was quite small.

However, this is not the view of mainstream medical organisations in Britain, Europe and the United States where many previous studies have shown that eating oily fish in particular does help prevent heart disease, and possibly some cancers also. Eating oily fish is also thought to help some people with mental health problems.

The fish and heart health issue first came to light many years ago when it was fond that Canadian Inuits (Eskimos) were found to be almost free of heart attack problems and this was put down to their diet of oily fish. There were similar findings among men in Japan, who eat little else but fish, even though they are heavy smokers.

But when both these groups moved to north American cities and engaged in a Western (high saturated fat) diet they suffered the same heart problems as everyone else.

Currently, a much larger study into the effects of fish on the heart involving almost 30,000 people is underway in the United States. If it comes to the same conclusion as the Danish report then the fishing industry may have to re-think its marketing strategy.

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