As of the last WHO data up to September 2021, cardiovascular disease (CVD) remains the leading cause of death globally.
Before we dive deeper to explain how you can reduce the risk of heart disease, here are some key statistics and information about cardiovascular disease based on that data:
Global Deaths
CVDs are responsible for an estimated 17.9 million deaths each year, representing 31% of all global deaths. Of these deaths, 85% are due to heart attack and stroke.
Risk Factors
Major risk factors for CVDs include:
-
- Tobacco use
- Unhealthy diet and obesity
- Physical inactivity
- Harmful use of alcohol
- Hypertension (high blood pressure)
- Diabetes
- Elevated blood lipids
High-income vs Low-income
People in low- and middle-income countries are more likely to die of CVDs than those in high-income countries.
Prevention
At least 80% of all premature deaths from CVD could be prevented through a better diet, regular physical activity, and avoiding tobacco use.
Economic Impact
Beyond the health impact, CVD can have significant economic implications, both in terms of direct medical costs and the lost productivity of affected individuals.
How can you reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease?
As a part of improving your lifestyle and introducing healthy habits like eating nutritious meals or working out regularly, you can ensure you get enough of Omega 3s which may reduce your risk of cardiovascular disease, the world’s number 1 killer.
There are three main types of omega 3:
- Ala – found in large amounts in hemp seeds, walnuts and flaxseeds
- EPA
- DHA
Found in fatty cold water fish, ALA and DHA, in particular, are the Omega 3s that reduce your risk of CVD disease
ALA can be converted into EPA and DHA, but unfortunately, the process is incredibly inefficient.
This is why consuming omega 3 from flax seed and hemp is not going to give you the same health benefits as consuming fatty fish.
EPA and DHA have some other incredible benefits.
Randomised controlled trials show the following benefits:
- An increase in muscle volume and strength
- Slowed Telomere shortening (telomere length is an indicator of your true biological age. High Omega 3 intake slows this down!)
- Improved memory – in particular, with consumption of DHA
A meta-analysis of 17 studies which in total contained 14,000 people, has shown that those with the highest EPA/DHA blood levels were 17% less likely to die prematurely and 9-21% less likely to die from CVD disease compared with those with the lowest levels.
What’s the mechanism for this?
This is explained by the role omega 3 has in blood clotting, relaxation and contracting of arteries.
Omega 3 reduces inflammation by reducing the production of pro-inflammatory molecules such as TNF-a and IL-6.
This is important as inflammation is the primary driver of CVD disease because inflammation increases the production of LDL (bad cholesterol).
LDL promotes the formation of plaque molecules leading to atherosclerosis which is the thickening and hardening of arteries.
High triglycerides are the primary component of LDL which leads to atherosclerosis.
Levels above 200mg/dl increase the risk of CVD.
In randomised controlled studies, 4g of EPA reduced triglycerides by 18% and this led to a 25% reduction in cardiovascular events.
Why use supplements?
4g epa/dha vs 1g epa/dha saw a greater reduction in CVD events.
This shows you need high dosages of omega 3 which is very hard to consume in high enough quantities from fatty fish.
100g of salmon contains 2g of EPA/DHA total, which means you would have to have 200g of salmon of every day to reach 4g.
This is why using a high-quality supplement is advised.
When looking to buy a supplement, make sure the omega 3 is in the more bioavailable triglyceride form.
Also, make sure they are free of heavy metals and not rancid like a lot of the cheaper fish oil brands.
Cheap fish oil brands are also very low-dosed, having very little EPA/DHA. You would have to take 30 tabs a day to get 4g of omega 3.
Brands I recommend are:
Trained by JP is pharma grade and I know Jordan very well – I know he only uses the highest quality ingredients.
Per serving, it contains 4200mg of EPA/DHA total in Triglyceride form.
With all of our clients, we only recommend the highest quality.
Conclusion
Omega 3 drastically reduces your risk of cardiovascular disease.
You need to consume this from fatty fish or fish oil supplements, as flaxseed is in the inferior ALA form.
EPA/ DHA reduces your risk of CVD by reducing inflammation and triglycerides.
4g of EPA/DHA total is the most effective dose.
Only pick high-quality supplements such as Trained by JP, Carlson’s or Nordic Naturals.
