Dr. Rhonda Patrick on omega-3: what the evidence says · JRE #1701
SUBJECT: OMEGA-3
Not a true/false call. Every claim is logged with its sources; read the exhibits below.
people with the highest omega-3 index, again, it was in that 7% range. And this was not statistically significant. It was because there was a small sample size, but there was like a 75% reduction in COVID mortality.
What the evidence says 01 / RECORD
The figure Patrick cites comes from a 2021 pilot study by Harris et al., published in Prostaglandins, Leukotrienes and Essential Fatty Acids, which measured the omega-3 index (red blood cell EPA+DHA levels) in blood samples from 100 hospitalized COVID-19 patients drawn at admission. Of 25 patients in the highest omega-3 index quartile (Q4, index approximately 5.7% or higher), one died, versus 13 of 75 deaths among the other three quartiles combined; after adjusting for age and sex, the odds ratio for death in Q4 versus Q1-3 was 0.25 (roughly a 75% lower odds of death), with p = 0.07. The authors themselves described this as not meeting the classical threshold for statistical significance and explicitly called for larger, better-powered studies before drawing firm conclusions. No larger randomized trial has since confirmed a mortality benefit of omega-3 status specifically for COVID-19 outcomes. Patrick's statement matches the study's own reported figures and caveats closely, correctly flagging both the effect size and its lack of statistical significance and small sample size.