Taking omega-3 fatty acids can have many benefits, but
surely cannot help prevent relapses in patients with Crohn’s disease, two
studies concluded.
Crohn’s disease is an ongoing disorder that causes
inflammation of the gastrointestinal tract, usually in the lower part of the
intestines, and results in pain and diarrhea, rectal bleeding, weight loss,
arthritis, skin problems and fever. Bleeding may be serious and persistent,
leading to anemia. Because its symptoms are similar to other intestinal
disorders, the disease can be difficult to diagnose.
The findings of the studies break popular alternative
treatment used by maybe a fifth of Crohn’s patients to try to prevent symptoms
that can be painful.
A total of 738 patients in Canada,
Europe, Israel and the United States
whose symptoms were in remission participated in two studies with no significant
differences discovered at the end. The research took place between January 2003
and February 2007.
In one study, 363 participants were assigned randomly to
take either a daily mega-3 supplement or a placebo for 52 weeks. In the second
study, 375 participants took the pills for 58 weeks.
The findings showed that 138 patients given omega-3
supplement in both studies had a relapse, while 156 patients given a placebo
had a relapse. There was just a slight difference between the two groups, which
means omega 3 fatty acids don’t work in Crohn’s relapse.
“We're still looking for the optimal
drug or combination of drugs to prevent relapse. But I think we can take omega-3
fatty acids off the list,” Dr. R. Balfour Sartor of the University of North
Carolina, who serves as chief medical adviser to the Crohn's & Colitis
Foundation of America, said, according to Reuters.
“These studies are quite definitive. The bottom line is, if you're looking
to prevent a relapse of Crohn's disease, these are not effective and there are
other drugs that work,” said study lead author Dr. Brian Feagan, professor of
medicine and director of Robarts Clinical Trials at the Robarts Research
Institute, University of Western Ontario in London, Ontario, Canada
The study appeared in the April 9 issue of The Journal of
the American Medical Association.
