There is consistent evidence from double blind, placebo-controlled clinical trials that dietary n-3 fats, supplied as fish oil, can have beneficial effects in rheumatoid arthritis.
Sixty-eight patients with rheumatoid arthritis on an 8-month anti-inflammatory diet supplemented with fish oil led to a significant reduction in the numbers of tender (28%) and swollen (34%) joints.
Rheumatoid arthritis is associated with increased risk for cardiovascular risk. Fish oil has been to shown to reduce cardiovascular risk in patients with rheumatoid arthritis.
Not only has n-3 essential fatty acid supplementation been shown to help reduce the daily nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) requirement of rheumatoid arthritis patients, but also some rheumatoid arthritis patients who take fish oil are able to discontinue NSAIDs without experiencing a disease flare.
A 9-month double-blind placebo-controlled randomized study of ninety-seven rheumatoid arthritis patients resulted in 39% of the n-3 essential fatty acid group reducing their daily NSAID requirement as opposed to 10% from the placebo group.
Rheumatoid arthritis patients using fish oil supplements show a more pronounced improvement when used in combination with olive oil.
A number of mechanisms through which n-3 fats may reduce inflammation have been identified. Controlled trials indicate that dietary supplementation with n-3 fatty acids provides modest symptomatic benefit in patients with rheumatoid arthritis. Dietary n-3 supplementation is practical and can be easily achieved with encapsulated or, less expensively, bottled fish oil.
References:
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5. Kremer JM, Lawrence DA, Petrillo GF, Litts LL, Mullaly PM, Rynes RI, Stocker RP, Parhami N, Greenstein NS, Fuchs BR, et al. Effects of high-dose fish oil on rheumatoid arthritis after stopping nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drugs. Clinical and immune correlates. Arthritis Rheum. 1995 Aug;38(8):1107-14. PMID: 7639807.
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8. Image by Braegel
