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It appears that fish oil prevents second heart attacks but primarily in Europe. It has become the usual practice over there to prescribe purified fish oil to patients who have had a heart attack. Their longevity increases through the likely benefit of preventing future heart attacks.

But in the U. S. fish oil, as a rich source of omega-3, hasn't been given nearly as much of an opportunity to benefit our cardiovascular systems, at least, not the prescription-grade of the fishy substance known by the brand name of Omacor, which is, among other tidy benefits, mercury-free.

Now, the dispute has gotten smoky hot.

We read such notices as, 'Most cardiologists here are not giving omega-3's, even though the data supports it. There's a real disconnect,' said Dr. Terry Jacobson, a cardiologist at Emory University in Atlanta. 'They have been very slow to incorporate the therapy.'

It appears, in fact, that if a prescription is sent to many a health insurance company in the USA that calls for Omacor, the patient receives a note that it's not covered and generic fish oil is recommended as a relatively inexpensive substitute. Only trouble is, of course, the OTC varieties are not as reliably pure or concentrated.

With more and more studies demonstrating the benefits of fish oil, the question is, when will American medicine finally get hooked?