Omega 3 Fatty Acids and Prostate Cancer Risk: A Critical Analysis

2013-09-30 08:41:11

A recently published, and widely publicized, paper on omega 3 Fatty acids sent a very strong and incorrect message to the public; that use of these fatty acids is potentially harmful to human health and their use should be reconsidered in some. The study published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute came to the conclusion that omega 3 fatty acids increase the risk of prostate cancer and are somehow involved in tumor development.⁽¹⁾ The reality is this study is laden with flaws and limitations and it is crucial that the public understands that the information presented was misconstrued.

First, although the article implies that the study was designed to assess prostate cancer risk in men consuming omega 3 fatty acids/fish oil supplements, it in fact was not. The data used in this paper was collected from the SELECT trial which was originally designed to look at vitamin E and selenium in a group of men followed for several years to determine prostate cancer incidence. Dietary fish consumption and/or fish oil supplement use was never assessed in this study! Additionally, the fatty acid levels reported were from a single blood draw taken at the start of the study while the cancer diagnosis was made years later! Not to mention the fact that the difference in fatty acid blood levels between the groups of men wasn’t even clinically significant. The numerous studies that actual look at the relationship between dietary fish consumption and/or fish oil supplementation and prostate cancer show reduced risk of developing prostate cancer^{(2, 3, 4)} as well as decreased prostate-specific mortality.^{(5, 6)} in those with increased consumption. The take home message is that there is no evidence to support the claim that omega 3 fatty acids cause prostate cancer. These fats are safe and extremely beneficial for a number of health concerns including prostate cancer.