GGGGGrrrrrr. At first I was elated that the Times mentioned that Heart Disease is related to low levels of Omega 3's, yipppee! But then when I continued reading this little blurb I became depressed. These negative studies, it's almost like it's on purpose! There they are, these scientists and these reporters, playing around omega 3's, corn Oil, and heart disease, but they are concerned that upping Omega 3's didn't fix depression - so they can't recommend taking it. It's kinda like watching a young Louis Pasteur playing around with vats of broth, bacteria, and flame and watching him get upset that he didn't find a new way to curl hair.

How much did they take? Dr. Davis has his patients taking a pretty big dose and he said it reduces triglycerdies.

Maybe Zoloft blocks some of the benefits of omega-3s.

On the other hand, testing Omega-3/Omega-6 and transfats in the blood is a way, way better indicator of future heart disease than cholesterol testing.

http://heartscanblog.blogspot.com/2...her-better.html

I hope they do a follow-up. This leaves us with more questions than answers.
- Did they adjust dietary levels of Omega-6s to allow the Omega-3s to be absorbed?
- Did the supplements improve their cardiac conditions in any way?
- Did they explore the possibility that the compounds in sertraline prevent proper absorption of Omega-3s?
- Why was ARA not included in the Omega-3 supplements?
- Could the results be different if physical activity and/or light therapy was included?

Nancy, here's an excerpt from the abstract.

2 g/d of omega-3 acid ethyl esters (930 mg of eicosapentaenoic acid [EPA] and 750 mg of docosahexaenoic acid [DHA]) = 1680g omega 3 about 5 or 6 daily of the omega 3 you bought.

I can't get the full text so I can't see if these people were in hospital or not but I guess these were at home.
I guess also they were eating their "normal" SAD diet.
As we know
High Omega-6 Diet Lowers Omega-3 Status, but Low Omega-6 Diet Preserves
it is a fact that higher omega 6 intake displaces omega 3 although a higher intake of omega 3 does in the short term help improve plasma and stroke, surgery, accident, survival a significant reduction in omega 6 enhances that action.
IDEALLY our omega 3 ~ omega 6 ratio would be 1~1 at worst it should be no more than 1~4
current UK average is 1~10
current USA average 1~20

So you can see why Dr Davis is using much higher amounts of omega 3 to try to make a significant difference to the ratio.
Stephan on the other hand thinks the main emphasis should be on REDUCING THE OMEGA 6 side of the see saw

I don't know if any of you have listened to the talks at the omega 3 conference here
http://videocast.nih.gov/summary.asp?live=8107
Really set up for the military but still interesting.
The Hibbeln session was particularly interesting in regards to depression.
Omega Fatty Acids and Aggression, Suicide and Psychiatric Distress
CAPT Joseph R. Hibbeln, M.D.
At some point in the day someone asked how long it takes to change brain omega 3 DHA status and the answer was 2.5yrs to change 50%.

So given a background where omega 3 is added in a situation where it's being overwhelmed (neutralised, displaced) by omega 6, too little is being used and only 10 weeks was allowed, is anyone surprised by the result.

I read a book called The Queen of Fats a year or so ago.

My memory may be somewhat faulty, but I thought it said something about it taking a minimum of six months after balancing the omega-3's and omega-6's in your diet to change out the fats stored in the body.