The Los Angeles Times (1/19, Roan) "Booster Shots" blog reported that, according to findings appearing in the Journal of the American Medical Association, "people with heart disease who had high levels of omega-3 fatty acids in their blood had a lower rate of shortening of telomere length -- a marker for aging -- compared with similar heart patients who had the lowest levels of omega-3 fatty acids."

        The Wall Street Journal (1/20, Burton) reports that the study of 608 heart patients targeted marine omega-3, which is found in fish, rather than omega-3 fatty acids typically in certain vegetable sources. But, researchers did not differentiate between patients who ate meals with fatty fish and those who took fish-oil supplements.

        The study showed that "as blood levels of omega-3 went up, the rate at which telomeres shortened decreased," HealthDay (1/19, Gardner) reported. Furthermore, "to the extent that" the rate of shortening of telomeres "is a marker of biological aging, the rate of biological aging went down."

        WebMD (1/19, Doheny) reported, however, that the researchers remained uncertain over whether the "effect of omega-3 fatty acids on telomere length is present in those without coronary heart disease," suggesting that telomere shortening may occur in everyone.

        MedPage Today (1/19, Fiore) reported that the findings back "recommendations of the American Heart Association, that patients with known coronary artery disease should be getting at least one gram a day of omega-3 fish oil," the researchers said. Still, "some cardiologists were quick to point out that the results are preliminary and need to be replicated." HeartWire (1/19, Nainggolan), the UK's Guardian (1/19), and the UK's Daily Mail (1/19, Hope) also covered the story.