Omega-3 lowers inflammation, blood pressure in obese adults
Cardiovascular disease, or CVD, is a leading cause of death worldwide, and diet strongly influences risk. The American Heart Association recommends reducing saturated fat and increasing polyunsaturated fatty acids, or PUFA, intake, which may cut CVD risk by up to 30%. PUFAs include omega-3 and omega-6, but their direct effects on CVD-related inflammation have not been well compared.
In a recent study, published in the Journal of Lipid Research, Elise Grytten of Haukeland University Hospital and colleagues compared omega-3, or fish oil, and omega-6, or safflower oil, supplements on CVD risk markers. Participants were overweight adults aged 30–70 with abdominal obesity. They received either omega-3 supplements (rich in eicosapentaenoic, or EPA, and docosahexaenoic, or DHA, acids) or omega-6 supplements (rich in linoleic acid) in randomized seven-week sequences. Omega-3 supplements reduced proinflammatory chemokines such as CCL5 and CCL4, suggesting these anti-inflammatory effects could lower CVD risk. Transcriptomic analysis showed overlapping changes in 75 genes across both groups. However, omega-6s’ anti-inflammatory benefits depended on sufficient omega-3 intake. Furthermore, omega-3 lowered blood pressure in participants without hypertension, while omega-6 increased it. Overall, the findings suggest that high-quality omega-3– and omega-6–rich oils may lower the risk of abdominal obesity and cardiometabolic disease. Also, supplementation of omega-6, in contrast to omega-6, appeared to increase adipose inflammation, with unknown clinical relevance.
Despite limitations — including possible carryover effects, unequal supplement doses and small sample size — the authors believe their findings provide new insight into how PUFAs affect adipose inflammation. In the future, they plan to study how omega-6 alters linoleic acid–derived metabolites.
Enjoy reading ASBMB Today?
Become a member to receive the print edition four times a year and the digital edition monthly.
Learn moreGet the latest from ASBMB Today
Enter your email address, and we’ll send you a weekly email with recent articles, interviews and more.
Latest in Science
Science highlights or most popular articles
From humble beginnings to unlocking lysosomal secrets
Monther Abu–Remaileh will receive the ASBMB’s 2026 Walter A. Shaw Young Investigator Award in Lipid Research at the ASBMB Annual Meeting, March 7-10 in Washington, D.C.
Chemistry meets biology to thwart parasites
Margaret Phillips will receive the Alice and C. C. Wang Award in Molecular Parasitology at the ASBMB Annual Meeting, March 7-10 in Washington, D.C.
ASBMB announces 2026 JBC/Tabor awardees
The seven awardees are first authors of outstanding papers published in 2025 in the Journal of Biological Chemistry.
Missing lipid shrinks heart and lowers exercise capacity
Researchers uncovered the essential role of PLAAT1 in maintaining heart cardiolipin, mitochondrial function and energy metabolism, linking this enzyme to exercise capacity and potential cardiovascular disease pathways.
Decoding how bacteria flip host’s molecular switches
Kim Orth will receive the Earl and Thressa Stadtman Distinguished Scientists Award at the ASBMB Annual Meeting, March 7–10, just outside of Washington, D.C.
Defining JNKs: Targets for drug discovery
Roger Davis will receive the Bert and Natalie Vallee Award in Biomedical Science at the ASBMB Annual Meeting, March 7–10, just outside of Washington, D.C.