Habitual Fish Oil Use Reduces Risk of Kidney Stones in Individuals with Genetic Risk, reveals study

Kidney stones or renal stones are
common, expensive, and painful diseases affecting several people worldwide. The
presence of renal stones significantly increases the risk of metabolic,
cardiovascular, and inflammatory diseases. Evidence shows that inflammation and hyperlipidemia
play a vital role in the pathogenesis of renal stones. Hence, anti-inflammatory
and lipid-lowering treatments or supplements are necessary to prevent the
development of renal stones. Previous research shows that fish oil supplementation
has potential health benefits as it can reduce blood pressure and triglycerides
levels as well as pose anti-inflammatory effects. Hence, researchers from Nanfang
Hospital conducted a study to assess the association between habitual fish oil
use and new-onset kidney stones in participants with different levels of
genetic risks of kidney stones.

A prospective cohort study was
carried out by recruiting approximately 500,000 participants aged 37–73 years
from the UK biobank. Individuals with kidney stones at baseline as determined
by self-report or hospitalization records and used fish oil and having
information on the kidney stone’s genetic risk score were included in the
study. Fish oil usage was determined through a food frequency questionnaire
(FFQ) and a series of 24-hour dietary recalls. Based on the fish
oil usage individuals were categorized into constant nonusers, occasional
users, modest users, and moderate-high users. Participants were categorized
into three groups low risk, moderate risk, and high risk based on the genetic
risk categories. The main outcome was the new-onset kidney stones.

Findings:

• During a median follow-up of 12.0 years, 5,637
  cases of kidney stones were documented.
• The study found that high genetic risks of
  kidney stones had a higher prevalence of developing new-onset kidney stones.
• The habitual use of fish oil was associated with
  a lower risk of new-onset kidney stones when compared with those who did not
  use it in participants with low or intermediate genetic risks.
• However, the same was not reflected in those
  with high genetic risks of kidney stones.
• Individuals with low to intermediate risks have a
  lower risk of kidney stones with frequent fish oil use while modestly constant
  users have the most significant reduction in the risk.

Thus, the study concluded that habitual
fish oil use was associated with a lower risk of new-onset kidney stones in
participants with low or intermediate genetic risk of kidney stones. This study
reinforces the importance of fish oil intake against the development of
gene-less-determined kidney stones.

Further reading: Gan X, Liu M, He
P, et al. Habitual fish oil supplementation, genetic susceptibility of kidney
stones and the risk of new-onset kidney stones. J Clin Lipidol.
2024;18(1):e116-e124. doi:10.1016/j.jacl.2023.11.013