Fish Oil & High Cholesterol - High Cholesterol Message Board

PollyAnn · 08-23-2006, 08:38 AM

I have a friend who swears Fish Oil causes her a weight gain. I never heard anyone complain of this nor have I come upon any reading on this. She tried 3 different types of Fish Oil (separate times) and noted she did gain weight while on any type of Fish Oil. When she stopped her weight began to drop again. She has stopped now 6 weeks and lost 9 pounds.

She had a full bottle of Fish Oil and asked if I wanted it. I decided I would try it even though I eat plenty of fresh caught fish daily plus I use flaxseeds full of Omega's. I have been taking 3 Fish Oil before bed for 6 weeks and have been sleeping more soundly and I have NOT gained weight but my morning glucose has been creeping up for a few weeks. So, I stopped the Fish Oil on Sunday (last dose) and today my morning glucose was back to normal again!

MY QUESTION: My glucose is very under control BUT has anyone heard of Fish Oil raising Cholesterol? My last Cholesterol reading was off the chart and I'm wondering if somehow I have an 'odd' reaction to Fish Oil like my friend with her weight gain.

Strange question, I know, but I think it may be adding to a raise in my readings and wondered if anyone ever heard of such a thing?

PollyAnn

livinTX · 08-23-2006, 10:11 AM

I doubt it would raise your readings. My husband has high cholesterol and was put on Crestor. When he went back for a test, his cholesterol was normal but his triglycerides were sky-high. His doctor recommended he take Omega3 fish oil daily to help lower his triglycerides. Next time he got his cholesterol checked, both cholesterol and triglycerides were normal. I doubt his doc would have told him to take something that would raise his cholesterol more.

Lenin · 08-24-2006, 06:26 AM

PollyAnne,

Fish oil is a supplement that contains aboput 50 calories/teaspoonfull (5 grams.)
I take 5 grams of fish oil and 5 grams of lecithin (also pure fat) daily and thus get 100 calories/day extra.
Over a year, this amounts to 36,500 calories or just about an even 10 pounds. So yes, fish oil can cause weight gain, just like any food.

Of course the way to deal with the caloric increase is to pare down the calories from something else, like another fat.

In absorbing any oil, the short term effect is to raise triglycerides as the oil is absorbed, oil is virtually 100% triglyceride. But after a 14 hour fast, the net benefit is usually a lowering of serum triglycerides with increased use of a high Omega-3 oil like fish oil.

I can't imagine why the effect on blood glucose?

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PollyAnn · 08-24-2006, 08:34 AM

Lenin,

Thanks for your post. I printed it out to show my friend. I knew Fish Oil had calories as does Flaxseeds, which I take daily but it was my friend that had a weight gain and I did not. I think she may have gained because she does NOT exercise on a daily basis and I exercise 5-6 days a week. That makes a big difference in burning calories.

Quote:

I can't imagine why the effect on blood glucose?

I found this strange also and didn't put the two together until I stopped the Fish Oil. It ONLY affected my FBG (morning) readings. Maybe because I took it before bed. I read several articles that Fish Oil has been proven to promote a good nights sleep. And for me, it did that.

My problem : while I was taking the Fish Oil I also had blood work for cholesterol and my numbers were horrible:

Chol: 257
Tri: 189
HDL: 43
LDL: 177
Ratio:6.0

Possibly, my body had a rare reaction to the Fish Oil and it shot my cholesterol numbers out of control? I've made changes in my diet and stopped the Fish Oil and will re-test in a few weeks. I'll leave it at that and bang my head against the wall if I do get the same results then.

PollyAnn

NHone · 08-24-2006, 05:48 PM

I would suspect that is much more important to take the fish oil than it is to look at cholesterol numbers. Numbers are just that... numbers....fish oil is know to lower inflammation in the arteries and is extremely beneficial to the heart.