Omega-3 Fatty Acids Improve Lipid Metabolism and Inflammatory Markers in Patients with Heart Failure Undergoing Exercise Training

Abstract

We hypothesize whether omega-3 (n-3) polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) supplementation may improve the lipid metabolism and inflammatory biomarkers in heart failure (HF) patients undergoing exercise training. Sixteen male patients, who were participating in a physical cardiac rehabilitation program, ingested 4.8 g of fish oil daily (2.51 g of eicosapentaenoic and docosahexaenoic acids) for 60 days. Blood samples were collected at baseline and after 60 days of n-3 PUFA supplementation for analysis. The paired Student t-test was applied to detect differences (p < 0.05). The n-3 PUFA significantly reduced the levels of triglyceride (28.9%), small dense LDL-cholesterol (16.2%), non-HDL-cholesterol (9.0%), and TNF-α (17.8%) after 60 days (p < 0.05). Furthermore, the transfer of cholesteryl-ester to HDL increased by 23.1% (p < 0.05). In summary, the n-3 PUFA supplementation improved the lipid metabolism and low-grade systemic inflammation in HF patients submitted to exercise training, which may lower the risk of cardiovascular events.

Omega-3 supplementation on inflammatory markers in patients with chronic Chagas cardiomyopathy: a randomized clinical study

“…Although these results have been demonstrated by studies conducted in several different populations [ 40 – 42 ], those examining the effects of omega-3 PUFAs supplementation on IL-10 in patients with HF presented controversial results. For instance, no changes for IL-10 were observed in a study including 16 male patients with HF that received omega-3 PUFAs supplementation during 60 days [ 43 ]. In addition, another study including 190 patients with paroxysmal or persistent atrial fibrillation showed no significant effects of omega-3 PUFAs supplementation on IL-10 concentration after a 6-month period [ 44 ].…”