- Folic Acid Reduces High Blood Pressure Risk in Women
Getting enough of the B vitamin folic acid is not only good for women looking to prevent birth defects in their future children, but folic acid may also protect them against high blood pressure, according to a 2005 study in the Journal of the American Medical Association.
Researchers reviewed data on folic acid intake from two large studies of women: The Nurses’ Health Study II, of 93,803 younger women age 27–44, and the Nurses’ Health Study I, of 62,260 older women age 43–70.
The younger women in the Nurses’ Health Study II who consumed at least 1,000 micrograms (mcg) of folic acid daily from their diet and supplements had a 46% reduction in their risk of developing high blood pressure compared with women who consumed less than 200 mcg of folic acid a day. Older women in the Nurses’ Health Study I also had a decreased risk, although it was less than that observed in the younger women. Until more studies confirm this finding, we do not recommend that you increase your daily folic acid to 1,000 mcg, especially by the use of folic acid supplements. The current recommended daily allowance for folic acid is 400 mcg, and this is a good amount of folic acid to aim for. If you decide to take a folic acid supplement, ask your doctor to check your B12 levels, since very high doses of folic acid can be dangerous if you have a B12 deficiency.
- Fish Oil Supplements Can Worsen Heart Arrhythmias
The American Heart Association recommends oily fish or fish oil supplements to prevent potentially fatal heart arrhythmias (irregular heart rhythms) in people with coronary heart disease. So doctors were surprised to find in a recent study that fish oil supplements actually increased the risk of fatal heart arrhythmias in people with an implanted defibrillator who had a history of ventricular arrhythmias.
Two hundred patients with ventricular arrhythmias who required an implanted defibrillator (a device that shocks the heart back into a normal rhythm when it goes off beat) were given either 1.8 g of fish oil supplements a day or an olive oil placebo and followed for two years. Forty-six percent of the patients randomized to receive fish oil supplements experienced arrhythmias in the first six months of the study, compared with 36% of those receiving the placebo.
Patients with a history of ventricular arrhythmias were most at risk for fish oil-induced irregular heart rhythms. We recommend that you avoid fish oil supplements if you have an implanted defibrillator and recurrent ventricular arrhythmias, since the fish oil supplements could worsen your condition. Otherwise, discuss with your doctor whether taking a fish oil supplement might reduce your risk of sudden death from coronary heart disease.
