Omega 3 Fatty Acids for Back Joint Pain

When talking about adding Omega 3 Fatty Acids to a nutritional supplementation for Joint Pain has some people asking "Why Omega 3 Fatty Acids? What do they have to do with Joint Pain relief?"

A recent University of Pittsburgh study using a daily dose of 2,400 mg of EPA/DHA (Docosahexaenoic acid and Eicosapentaenoic acid), then reducing to a dose of 1,200 mg of EPA/DHA on subjects with back pain resulted in 60% of the subjects gaining relief from chonic back pain. However the big statistic is that 80% of the subjects stated they would continue to take Omega 3 as they saw or felt other benefits as well.

My Aching Knees believes that Omega 3 Fatty Acids (usually derived from Fish Oil) is not only effective for joint pain but studies have suggested other health benefits as well, which include:

May significantly inhibit the growth of liver cancer cells.

Appears to help the brain to work faster, it increases IQ scores and slows down the aging process by reducing inflammation. (Lawrence Whalley, a mental health professor at Aberdeen University)

Fish oil with a high EPA content improves behavior, concentration and learning resulting in better grades at school. (The Durham trials led by Dr Madeleine Portwood)

High levels of EPA fish oil, may be an effective treatment for ADHD. (Adelaide University)

Fish oil reduced the severity of the symptoms for Bipolar disorder. (Dr Andrew Stoll)

Omega 3 supplementation improves complex cortical processing with improvements in mood and a reduction in anger, anxiety and depression. (Italian study by Fontani)

We have witnessed changes not only in chronic joint pain when adding a pharmaceutical grade Omega 3 to Glucosamine, but we have also seen positive (and quick) changes in ADD/ADHD children when Omega 3's are added to a daily anti-oxidant/multi-mineral nutritional supplement.

Be careful not to take non-pharmaceutical grade Fish Oil Supplements and you cannot be guaranteed to purity or potency and the presence of toxins, such as mercury can be significant.

Danny's Liquid Glucosamine Joint Health Product for Knee Pain

I ran into Danny, my neighbor, this morning. He is in his late 50's and more often than not, walks his dog down our rural roads. Today he was hobbling. I had met him about 18 months ago (when he wasn't hobbling so much) when he complained about knee joint pain. Danny is about 30-50 lbs overweight which of course bears on his knee joints.

Shortly after I first met Danny, I gave him some literature about the pharmaceutical grade Glucosamine I was taking. Danny told me he was already taking Glucosamine, Condroition, etc., without much relief.

I explained to him then that there is no guarantee of purity of ingredients and potency of the product when you buy off-the-shelf products at the local retail store. He seemed to get it, but as is my way, I gave him the information and did not pester him about going on the pharmaceutical grade Glucosamine for his knee joint pain - hey, let the buyer beware,..if he wants to spend it on food grade stuff, then so be it.

Anyway, this morning Danny told me he had just switched to a liquid joint health product, telling me that because it was a liquid it is aborbed into the body better than tablets or pills and that is was guaranteed, or money back, to help his aching knees.

I think it's important not to call anyone a fool, so I told Danny "Hey, great if it's working for you. But remember that nutrients are not absorbed in the stomach, but the intestines after they have been broken down by stomach. Be careful of off-the-shelf food grade products that do not have the USP symbol, for meeting United States Pharmacopoeia standards." Again let the buyer beware. What I really wanted to say was "Absorbed better?" "You have got to be kidding me". "Do you research on liquid supplements as there is no data to support any of those claims."

The worse thing about it is that Danny is actually paying more for the liquid food grade joint health supplement than he would for the same amount of pharmaceutical grade Glucosamine.