08.28.20
A new paper, published in the American Journal of Epidemiology on the relationship between omega-3 status and a condition called interstitial lung disease (ILD) found that there was an inverse relationship between the two. ILD encompasses a wide range of disorders and symptoms, most of which can cause progressive scarring to the lungs, resulting in respiratory issues that cause reduced bloodstream oxygen levels.
Specifically, DHA has been shown to reduce ILD in experimental models, but prior to this study, human clinical trial results were and still are largely lacking. In this new meta-analysis, researchers conducted cross-examinations between the lung abnormalities observed in the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis (MESA), the Framingham Heart Study (FHS) and the Age/Gene Environment Susceptibility (AGES) study for a total study population of more than 10,000 subjects. Each of these studies examined associations of circulating levels of omega-3 DHA, and other fatty acids, with hospitalization and death due to ILD over a 12-year period.
In the trials, omega-3 levels were analyzed from fasting blood samples, extracted from either plasma phospholipids, or red blood cell membranes.
According to the analysis, higher DHA levels were associated with a lower risk of hospitalizations due to ILD with an adjusted rate ratio of 0.69 per standard deviation increment. Additionally, higher DHA was associated with less interstitial lung abnormalities on CT, with an adjusted odds ratio of 0.65 per natural log increment.
William S. Harris, PhD, FAHA, one of the study’s authors and founder of OmegaQuant, commented on how the study made further ground supporting the potential omega-3s have in modulating inflammatory response beneficially.
“I think the take-home message of this study is that the severity of an inflammatory disease – this time in the lung – is inversely related to blood omega-3 levels,” Harris said. “That is, after adjusting statistically for the other factors that could make one susceptible to interstitial lung disease, a low DHA levels was still associated with increased risk for having ILD by lung CT scanning. More importantly, a low DHA level was associated with having a greater risk of being hospitalized for ILD and for dying from ILD-related lung disorders. This research suggests that having higher circulating omega-3 levels offer significant protection in this context, which is particularly timely given the COVID-19 pandemic.”
Specifically, DHA has been shown to reduce ILD in experimental models, but prior to this study, human clinical trial results were and still are largely lacking. In this new meta-analysis, researchers conducted cross-examinations between the lung abnormalities observed in the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis (MESA), the Framingham Heart Study (FHS) and the Age/Gene Environment Susceptibility (AGES) study for a total study population of more than 10,000 subjects. Each of these studies examined associations of circulating levels of omega-3 DHA, and other fatty acids, with hospitalization and death due to ILD over a 12-year period.
In the trials, omega-3 levels were analyzed from fasting blood samples, extracted from either plasma phospholipids, or red blood cell membranes.
According to the analysis, higher DHA levels were associated with a lower risk of hospitalizations due to ILD with an adjusted rate ratio of 0.69 per standard deviation increment. Additionally, higher DHA was associated with less interstitial lung abnormalities on CT, with an adjusted odds ratio of 0.65 per natural log increment.
William S. Harris, PhD, FAHA, one of the study’s authors and founder of OmegaQuant, commented on how the study made further ground supporting the potential omega-3s have in modulating inflammatory response beneficially.
“I think the take-home message of this study is that the severity of an inflammatory disease – this time in the lung – is inversely related to blood omega-3 levels,” Harris said. “That is, after adjusting statistically for the other factors that could make one susceptible to interstitial lung disease, a low DHA levels was still associated with increased risk for having ILD by lung CT scanning. More importantly, a low DHA level was associated with having a greater risk of being hospitalized for ILD and for dying from ILD-related lung disorders. This research suggests that having higher circulating omega-3 levels offer significant protection in this context, which is particularly timely given the COVID-19 pandemic.”