Should you stop taking fish oil? A new study in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute found that men with the highest concentrations of omega-3 fatty acids in their blood had a 71 percent greater risk for developing a deadly type of prostate cancer.

While a stat like that may sound worrisome, a closer look at the research shows there's no reason to toss your fish oil supplement, or take mackerel off the menu.

“The most important thing to know is that this is not a definitive finding,” says Men's Health's urology advisor, Larry Lipshultz, M.D., of Baylor College of Medicine. “This type of study shows a correlation, but it does not prove causation.” In other words, it wasn't a controlled clinical trial in which some men swallowed fish oil and others didn’t.

Instead, researchers looked at levels of certain omega-3 fatty acids in participants’ blood and watched who developed prostate cancer and who didn’t over time—but the method the researchers used wasn't great, says Chris Mohr, Ph.D., R.D., The Belly Off! Club nutritionist.

The guys in the study had their blood drawn once a year. “It’s a small snapshot of what was in their blood at those times instead of a clear picture of their long-term chronic intake of omega-3 fatty acids,” Mohr says. “If you just had a salmon dinner the night before, your levels would be way higher than what’s actually average for you.”

Also complicating matters: The fact that researchers didn’t set out to determine an association between omega-3s and prostate cancer in the first place. The findings were extrapolated from a study that looked at whether selenium and vitamin E protect against prostate cancer. (They don’t). The researchers just also happened to gather information on omega-3 blood levels, which wasn't very useful.

The bottom line? Studies showing the protective effects of omega-3 fatty acids for heart, brain, eye health and more are much stronger and numerous than this one, Mohr says. More controlled clinical trials are needed to give the prostate-cancer link any legs—or, er, fins. So continue putting fish on your plate at least twice a week, or supplementing your diet with fish oil. (Click here for the 10 Best Fish for Men.)

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Paige Greenfield Paige Greenfield is a YogaLife Contributing Editor.

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