Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2001 Sep;86(3):397-404.
doi: 10.1079/bjn2001415.

Markers of high fish intake are associated with decreased risk of a first myocardial infarction

Affiliations

Markers of high fish intake are associated with decreased risk of a first myocardial infarction

C G Hallgren et al. Br J Nutr. 2001 Sep.

Abstract

High intake of fish has been associated with reduced risk of CHD. The high content of n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) in fish has been suggested to be a protective factor. In addition, fish is the entirely dominating source of methylmercury for the general population, and the concentration of Hg in erythrocytes (Ery-Hg) is often used as an index of fish consumption. Our aim was to study the relationships between a first-ever myocardial infarction, Ery-Hg, activity of gluthathione peroxidase in erythrocytes (Ery-GSH-Px) and plasma concentration of the n-3 PUFA eicosapentaenoic and docosahexaenoic acids (P-PUFA). In a population-based prospective nested case-control study within Northern Sweden seventy-eight cases of a first-ever myocardial infarction were compared with 156 controls with respect to Ery-Hg, P-PUFA and Ery-GSH-Px. Both Ery-Hg and P-PUFA, but not Ery-GSH-Px, were significantly higher in subjects reporting high fish intake (at least one meal per week) than in those with lower intake. This finding suggests that Ery-Hg and P-PUFA reflect previous long-term fish intake. Low risk of myocardial infarction was associated with high Ery-Hg or high P-PUFA. In a multivariate model the risk of myocardial infarction was further reduced in subjects with both high Ery-Hg and high P-PUFA (odds ratio 0.16, 95 % CI 0.04, 0.65). In conclusion, there is a strong inverse association between the risk of a first myocardial infarction and the biomarkers of fish intake, Ery-Hg and P-PUFA, and this association is independent of traditional risk factors.

PubMed Disclaimer

Similar articles

Cited by

Publication types

LinkOut - more resources

-