Daily HealthBeat Tip

Can fish oil fight cancer?

From the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, I'm Ira Dreyfuss with HHS HealthBeat.

Omega-3 fatty acids is the formal name. You can find them in some fish, such as salmon; some oils, such as canola, and dark green leafy vegetables.

Omega-3 fatty acids can protect the heart. And researchers suspected omega-3 also can fight cancer. But an in-depth examination finds a cancer benefit doesn't stand up.

Catherine MacLean of RAND Health in Santa Monica, California, worked on the project. Her report in the Journal of the American Medical Association was supported by HHS' Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality.

"I would not recommend omega-3 fatty acids for the specific purpose of preventing cancer." (five seconds)

But MacLean says that's no reason to give up omega-3 – not as long as you still have a heart.

Learn more at www.hhs.gov.

HHS HealthBeat is a production of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. I'm Ira Dreyfuss.

Last revised: March 22, 2006

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