Blackmores Institute

The study found that daily supplementation with 2g of DHA rich fish oil significantly reduced overall chronic pain by 42%, as well as significantly reducing OA pain and OA burden by 40%, compared with placebo.The reductions in OA pain and burden were also accompanied by improvements in wellbeing (total mood disturbance and depressive symptoms). Blackmores Institute Director Dr Lesley Braun said: “We know how pain can negatively impact a person’s quality of life. This study highlights a really exciting area for further investigation that has the potential to improve the lives of our older populations.”The reductions in overall pain following fish oil treatment were also associated with increases in the small artery elasticity index which suggests that fish oil’s ability to alleviate pain might be at least partly attributable to improved microvascular functionPublished in the journal Rheumatology Advances in Practice, the study on 152 overweight/obese older adults (aged 50-80years) was an exploratory analysis of the secondary outcomes of the FOCUS trial. The 16-week double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled trial investigated whether fish oil and curcumin supplementation, independently or in combination. Participants took a daily supplement* of either fish oil (2000mg docosahexaenoic acid + 400mg eicosapentaenoic acid/day), curcumin (160mg/day) or a combination of both compared to placebo. The strongest improvements were observed with those taking fish oil as a standalone supplement. The study authors observed that although there were some reductions in pain with the combination of fish oil and curcumin, (in combination) the reduction in pain was less than fish oil supplementation aloneDr Braun concluded: “When these results are considered in combination with the first paper from the FOCUS study, it’s obvious that this DHA rich formula has potential to positively impact both ‘pain and brain’. While more research is required these findings are very promising as these improvements are both important aspects of healthy aging”. * Products used in the study were Blackmores Omega Brain™ and Blackmores Brain Active™. Source:
 Rheumatology Advances in Practice. 2020. DOI: <a href="https://academic.oup.com/rheumap/advance-article/doi/10.1093/rap/rkaa036/5875620?searchresult=1" style="">10.1093/rap/rkaa036</a>

A new study from Newcastle University, supported by Blackmores Institute, has found that supplementing daily DHA rich fish oil has the potential to alleviate Osteoarthritic (OA) pain and burden in overweight/obese older adults.

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