A ‘game-changer’ within heart health, says researcher. Krill oil significantly reduces triglyceride levels in the blood – an important measure of heart health, shows the largest clinical investigation of an omega-3 formulation in this patient group to date.
Cardiovascular diseases (CVD) are the leading cause of deaths globally. An estimated 18 million people die from CVD every year. As a comparison, the global total deaths due to the COVID-19 pandemic are about 5.5 million people, or approximately one-third of all CVD deaths.
“This groundbreaking study gives proof that krill oil is part of the solution to alleviate the burden cardiovascular disease has on society. This can potentially have a significant impact on improving the health condition of millions of people and reduce healthcare costs,” explains Katina Handeland, Research & Development Director for Human Health and Nutrition, Aker BioMarine ASA.
Triglycerides are a type of fat (lipid) found in the blood. In the US, one-third of the population have elevated triglyceride levels in their blood, which increases the risk of heart disease.
This publication from January 6, 2022, presents the effects of krill oil supplementation on 520 patients with severely high triglyceride levels in their blood (hypertriglyceridemia). Participants were randomly assigned to receive krill oil capsules or placeboes over the course of the experiment. The patients’ triglyceride levels, plasma omega-3s, and cholesterol levels were measured before, during and after the 26-week duration of the trials. The current publication pools the data from 2 large clinical trials conducted by American and Canadian scientists, and was published in JAMA Network Open.
- The findings show that patients consuming the krill oil experienced a 26.0% reduction in blood triglyceride levels from baseline, versus a 15.1% reduction among the placebo group after 12 weeks, giving a significant treatment difference of -10.9%.
- After 26 weeks, the patients consuming the krill oil experienced a 33.5% reduction in blood triglyceride levels from baseline, versus a 20.8 % reduction among the placebo group, giving a significant treatment difference of -12.7%.
Krill oil treatment had even stronger effect in those who also took medication for hypertriglyceridemia
The study authors found that participants in the placebo group were more likely to see large variations in their triglyceride levels in the screening period before entering the trial. They therefore decided to look at a subsection of the participants who were most at risk, using medication to help with their high triglyceride levels.
“When analyzing only those patients receiving medications for their hypertriglyceridemia at study start, the authors observed even stronger reductions in the krill oil group and less reductions in the placebo group”, says Handeland. “This is interesting as these patients may represent an even more “true” hypertriglyceridemia patient population” she continues.
Previous research shows that krill oil is clinically proven to support the three markers of heart health, better than any other omega-3 source:
- Clinically proven to lower triglycerides levels in blood.
- Clinically proven to increase the Omega-3 Index: An increase of this Index from 4% to 8% would reduce the risk of fatal coronary heart disease by about 30%.
- No increase in LDL cholesterol levels (Berge et al, 2014).
“Multiple studies tell us that krill oil is an effective supplement for reducing cardiovascular risk and improving overall heart health, with consistent evidence of increased Omega-3 Index levels in patients,” says Handeland.
This study was not conducted by Aker BioMarine. The study did, however, use krill oil delivered by Aker BioMarine. The published article presenting these recent krill oil effects is available: https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamanetworkopen/fullarticle/2787655
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