Fish Oil, Diabetes and Hypertension
Posted by Michael Byrd on Apr 26 2007 | Tagged as: Fish Oil
Two out of three diabetics also have hypertension or high blood pressure. Together, they’re a deadly combination, greatly increasing the risk of nerve disease, vision and kidney problems, heart disease and stroke.
In order to put less stress on the heart and not make it work too hard, diabetics are warned to keep their blood pressure below 130/80.
To prevent and control hypertension, it’s important that diabetics maintain a healthy weight. They need to eat a low calorie, low glycemic diet high in fruits and vegetables and moderate in total fat and low in saturated fat and cholesterol, as well as limit their intake of both salt and sugars. Moderate exercise is also highly recommended. And, of course, they need to quit smoking.
Eating fish a couple of times a week or taking fish oil supplements can also help lower blood pressure. But, since fish and fish oil were thought to aggravate problems with glucose tolerance, some nutritionists were uneasy about recommending fish to diabetics.
That’s no longer the case. A Norwegian research team has proven that fish and fish oil have no adverse effect on glucose tolerance. (Annals of Internal Medicine, Vol. 123, 911-18)
Studying a group of obese volunteers with hypertension, researchers from the University of Tromso in Norway demonstrated that fish oil significantly decreased blood pressure, plasma triglycerides and very low density lipoproteins, all of which increase risk of heart disease.
But the good news for diabetics who also have high blood pressure is the fact the study also showed fish oil had no harmful effect on glucose tolerance.
Dr. William Connor of the Oregon Health Sciences University in Portland, Oregon, in an accompanying editorial, suggested that all diabetics, even those with hypertension, eat salmon, sardines or other fatty fish at least two or three times a week.
Dr. Connor also recommended, as either an alternative or for extra added insurance, all diabetics take daily fish oil supplements containing one gram of combined omega 3 DHA and EPA fatty acids.
The American Heart Association agrees. They recommend that everyone, including diabetics, eat fatty fish on a regular basis to help prevent heart disease and stroke. The American Diabetes Association also makes the same recommendation.
