Supplements don’t appear to help with heart health.

The fish oil supplements taken by millions around the world to reduce the effects heart disease may not be as beneficial as once believed.

People have been taking capsules of omega-3 supplements for decades to improve heart health. However, in a recently published study by the London-based Cochrane Heart Group, scientists believe there actually may be little to no benefit taking these additives.

The study was led by Dr. Lee Hooper from the University of East Anglia in England. His team conducted a meta-analysis involving 79 studies and over 112,000 people.

By looking at diverse populations of men and women from North America, Europe, Australia, and Asia, the researchers found “little or no difference to risk of cardiovascular events, coronary heart deaths, coronary heart disease events, stroke, or heart irregularities,” among those taking the supplement, according to a released statement by Cohrane.

The researchers found that these omega-3 fatty acids also had little to no meaningful effect on the risk for death from any cause. In those who increased their intake of omega-3 fats, the risk for death from any cause is 8.8 percent. Those who didn’t increase their intake of omega-3 fats had a 9 percent risk for death from any cause. This 0.2 percent difference is considered statistically insignificant.

“Results of a large meta-analysis showed that omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid supplements don’t provide any protection against cardiovascular disease events” said Dr. Marcin Kowalski, director of Cardiac Electrophysiology at Staten Island University Hospital in Staten Island, New York.

“Results of the study aren’t surprising given a borderline benefit shown in previous small studies with multiple biases,” he explained.

Although these findings may not be new as there’s been controversy regarding omega-3 fatty acids for many years, this is the first study to compile this magnitude of data.