Omega-3 Benefits for Menopause: Heart, Brain, and Mood | Papayya

As estrogen declines, the body changes in ways that quietly affect your heart, your brain and your emotional balance. Omega-3 helps in decreasing those effects. Here’s what the research supports and where it is still unclear.

Why menopause changes your heart-health picture

Estrogen helps in keeping cholesterol and blood vessels working well, Women face a higher risk of cardiovascular disease after menopause, linked to estrogen deficiency and disrupted lipid metabolism. Triglycerides are generally higher in postmenopausal women than in premenopausal women, and elevated triglycerides are associated with a higher risk of coronary heart disease.

Well, being fit does not make you immune to this, as training protects your heart, but hormonal changes in blood lipids still happen regardless of how often you work out.

What does the American Heart Association actually says

The AHA’s position is the following:

• Food comes first, as the AHA recommends two servings of fatty fish per week, in order to reduce the risk of heart disease and stroke. The best choices are salmon, mackerel and sardines.
• Supplements have a defined role. An advisory on fish oil looked at the trial evidence and updated its recommendations for people with existing cardiovascular disease and for primary prevention.
• The AHA has advised that anyone taking more than 3 grams of omega-3 should be done only under a doctor’s care.

What the lipid research shows for postmenopausal women

A study published in the Journal of Clinical Lipidology followed postmenopausal women for 15 years and examined the omega-3 index. Women with the highest omega-3 status were about 20% less likely to die from any cause than those with the lowest. That same report noted that higher EPA levels were inversely related to cardiovascular health. This is purely observational research, so it shows an association rather than proof of cause. It still supports the idea that omega-3 status is worth paying attention to after menopause.

A meta-analysis of randomized trials in postmenopausal women found that omega-3 supplementation was associated with an average triglyceride reduction of about 17.8mg/dL.

It also found increases in both LDL and HDL cholesterol, which is a reminder that omega-3 is one tool among many and not a cholesterol cure-all.

Brain and mood

During menopause, is often when many women notice her thinking starts to get foggy and you start to indulge in more and more mood swings. Some women even appear to have a higher risk of depression during periods of intense hormone fluctuation.

DHA is a structural component of brain tissue and the AHA notes that omega-3 plays an important role in both heart and brain health. A 2022 review in Nutrients concluded that human results on anxiety and cognition were controversial, as omega-3 intake showed beneficial effects on emotional and cognitive behaviour during the menopause transition.

Another review of trials in postmenopausal women found the combined analysis did not provide substantial evidence that omega-3 improves depression.

Where guidance fits in

At Papayya, we work with women who not only train hard, but also want their bodies to keep up through every life stage, and we treat omega-3 the same way science treats. As part of a bigger puzzle.

Our goal is to help you make informed decisions.

Sources

1. American Heart Association Science Advisory, Omega-3 Polyunsaturated Fatty Acid (Fish Oil) Supplementation and the Prevention of Clinical Cardiovascular Disease (Circulation, 2017): https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28289069/
2. American Heart Association News, “Are you getting enough omega-3 fatty acids?” (2023): https://www.Drugs.com/news/aha-news-you-getting-enough-omega-3-fatty-acids-113546.html
3. American Heart Association, “Keep saying yes to fish twice a week for heart health” (2018): https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/685711
4. AHA Nutrition Committee omega-3 guidance news release: https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/808395
5. Journal of Clinical Lipidology omega-3 index and mortality in postmenopausal women (summary by NutraIngredients): https://www.nutraingredients.com/Research/Omega-3-could-decrease-mortality-rate-in-postmenopausal-women-study-suggests
6. Meta-analysis on omega-3 and serum lipids in postmenopausal women (MIMS summary, 2023): https://www.mims.com/india/news-updates/topic/omega-3-supplements-lower-triglyceride-levels-in-postmenopausal-women
7. Dayspring T., “Understanding hypertriglyceridemia in women,” International Journal of Women’s Health (2011): https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC3061852
8. Effects of omega-3 on metabolic markers in postmenopausal women with metabolic syndrome, Climacteric (2015): https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25394692/
9. “Menopause-Associated Lipid Metabolic Disorders and Foods Beneficial for Postmenopausal Women”: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7019719/
10. n-3 PUFA Improve Emotion and Cognition during Menopause: A Systematic Review, Nutrients (2022): https://ouci.dntb.gov.ua/works/4NrMAqY4
11. Omega-3 in the menopausal transition (depression and cognition review): https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC6073395
12. Review of omega-3 for hot flashes, sleep, and depression in postmenopausal women (preprint): https://www.preprints.org/manuscript/202309.0073/v1/download

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