Dietary fish oils increase serum lipids in insulin-dependent diabetics compared with healthy controls.

The effect of daily dietary supplementation with fish oil on serum lipids and platelet total phospholipid fatty acids was examined in male normolipidemic insulin-dependent diabetics and normal controls. They were given 15 g/d of fish oil as Max EPA (equivalent to 2.7 g/d of eicosapentaenoic acid) for 3 weeks. The diabetics showed a rise in total cholesterol, attributable to increases in LDL- and HDL-cholesterol. The increase in HDL-cholesterol was largely due to a rise in its HDL2 subclass. There was also a decrease in triglycerides in both groups. Similar changes in lipids were seen in the normal controls, although these were not significant. The more pronounced effect in diabetics suggests an altered metabolic response to omega-3 fatty acids in that disorder. However, the results indicate that the possible detrimental effect of the rise in total and LDL-cholesterol following fish oil may be offset by the increase in the protective HDL2 subclass.