Taking omega-3 supplements increase risk of prostate cancer….

Hmm…   Before you just read the headlines and believe them, make sure you know the whole story! 

Remember: Headlines ‘sell’ news- the more outrageous the headline, the better the sales. Sadly, this seems to be the case with this recent headline.

Let’s set the record straight…
All the media attention came from a study, published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute by researchers from the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center.  It claims that men with higher blood levels of omega-3 fats had a greater risk in developing prostate cancer.  The lead author was quoted as saying, "We've shown once again* that use of nutritional supplements may be harmful."

* Interesting…Please note the ‘once again’ when referring to the potential harm of nutritional supplements: Could this statement have anything to do with the fact that this research group is known for their anti- supplement bias?

Onto more important things that show why these results are flawed and why this study should perhaps not have been given space in any reputable medical journal.

1. The participants in this study were NOT given omega-3 supplements or fed a diet of salmon, or any other fish known to be rich in omega-3’s.

2. This research group formed their conclusion using hand- picked old data from previous studies.

3. Interesting the conclusion did not warn against eating salmon, which is also very high in omega-3 fats. No, the only warning was against supplements (even though the study participants were not in fact given omega-3 supplements).

4. The conclusions from this study don't match up with basic real-world medical stats or the multitude of other studies that show omega-3’s actually decrease the risk of many types of cancers – including prostate cancer!  For example:  If omega-3 fats were causing prostate cancer, you would expect that countries with the highest fish intake would have the highest rates of prostate cancer. You would also expect that the countries with the lowest fish intake would have the lowest rates of prostate cancer. And yet the opposite is far closer to the truth.

5. This group reached their conclusion by using blood levels of omega-3’s.  The difference between the group with the ‘high’ levels of omega-3’s and the ‘low’ levels was less than 0.2%!  This miniscule difference is not, from a statistical standpoint, worthy of such a conclusion… especially considering that things like sugar levels, omega-6 levels, etc… were not mentioned.  Oh… almost forgot, those with the highest trans fat (the really bad fat) levels seemed to be at the lowest risk for prostate cancer.  Again, hmm… seems like the results shown by this group, fly in the face of a multitude of other studies!

For those looking for research that suggests that a diet rich in deep fried foods, smoking, and little to no exercise is ‘healthy’…then this is the study they want to believe and the research group they want to fund.

PS. This is strictly an editorial opinion:  Although the Fred Hutchinson Center is a highly respected cancer research center… it is a non-profit institute.  After looking into its primary sources of funding… it’s no wonder they seem to consistently hold an anti-vitamin (dietary supplement) opinion and instead are pro- pharmaceutical drug oriented.  They receive a considerable amount of funding through licensing and partnership agreements via pharmaceutical companies such as Actinium Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (a privately held biopharmaceutical company specialized in the development of cancer drugs) and GlaxoSmithKline. They also receive funds directly and indirectly through their membership at The National Comprehensive Cancer Network (another non-profit group that amoung other things ‘recommends’ the best places for cancer treatments).  It appears that their ‘recommendations’ only go to institutions who have paid for memberships.

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