Omega-3 EFAs May Improve Blood Pressure in Kidney Disease Patients
Lee Swanson Research Update
People with chronic kidney disease (CKD), which increases the risk of heart disease two- to 50-fold, experienced improvements in both blood pressure and heart rate following supplementation with four grams of omega-3 fatty acids, according to findings published in the Journal of Hypertension.
According to background information in the article, CKD is linked to increased prevalence in all-cause mortality, cardiovascular events and hospitalization. People with CKD are at an increased risk of cardiovascular disease, and modifiable risk factors include high blood pressure (hypertension).
Since omega-3 may improve blood pressure, heart rate, blood lipid levels and vascular function, Dr. Trevor Mori and his co-workers recruited 85 people with CKD (average age 56.5, average BMI 27.3 kg/m@) and randomly assigned them to receive either four grams of omega-3 (containing 1,840 mg EPA, 152 mg DPA and 1,520 mg DHA) or a placebo for eight weeks.
Results of the double-blind, placebo-controlled intervention showed that people receiving omega-3 experienced a 3.3 and 2.9 mmHg decrease in systolic and diastolic blood pressure, and a reduction of heart rate of 4.0 beats per minute. Furthermore, triglyceride levels decreased by 24% in this group.
"Future studies should include long-term supplementation in order to determine effects of omega-3 fatty acids on renal function in patients with CKD," wrote the researchers.
"These results show that omega-3 fatty acids lower blood pressure and may reduce cardiovascular risk in non-diabetic patients with moderate to severe CKD," they concluded.
Journal of Hypertension 27(9):1863-1872, 2009