In the JELIS Study from Japan, researchers compared the effect of adding eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), one of the major omega-3s in fish oil, to cholesterol-lowering statin drug treatment with statin treatment alone in more than 18,000 men and women with high cholesterol and triglycerides. All were at increased risk of coronary artery disease. At the end of 4-1/2 years, patients consuming EPA had 19% fewer major coronary events, 19% fewer non-fatal coronary episodes and 24% less heart spasms than patients taking only statins.

"As shown in many other studies of fish oil, EPA reduced the chance of risky coronary events in patients with heart disease," said Joyce Nettleton, DSc, editor of Fats of Life and the PUFA Newsletter. "For this reason, the omega-3s in fish are considered important for the secondary prevention of heart disease."