Study
Omega-3 fatty acids and oral and systemic inflammation: A secondary analysis of a randomized trial in patients with coronary artery disease.
A secondary analysis in 240 statin-treated coronary patients linked 3.36 g/day EPA+DHA to lower NLR and a left-side gingival marker.
Summary Can fish oil supplements reduce inflammation in people with heart disease? Show / hide ↓
Researchers studied 240 people with stable coronary artery disease who were taking statins. For 30 months, they received either 3.36 grams a day of EPA and DHA, the main fats in fish oil, or no supplement. Among 199 people with mouth samples, the supplement was linked to lower MIP-1β, a substance involved in inflammation, on one side of the gums. It also lowered the neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio, a blood measure of inflammation. The mouth result appeared only on the left side and did not show that gum disease or heart problems improved.
What this means for you: This does not provide a strong reason to buy high-dose fish oil for gum or general inflammation. The findings were limited to inflammation markers and one localized mouth result, so they need confirmation in larger studies.
weak evidenceThis secondary analysis used a randomised trial of 240 patients with stable coronary artery disease who were taking statins. Participants received 3.36 g/day of EPA plus DHA or no supplement for 30 months. Gingival crevicular fluid was available from the maxillary left and right quadrants in 199 participants, allowing oral as well as systemic inflammatory markers to be compared. EPA and DHA were associated with lower macrophage inflammatory protein-1β in the left gingival quadrant (p=0.038) and a lower neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio in blood (p=0.021). The abstract reports no significant oral marker effect in the right quadrant. Its authors proposed that handedness and toothbrushing behaviour might explain the localized left-side result, rather than a uniform oral effect. These outcomes are inflammatory markers, not periodontal disease progression, cardiovascular events, or survival. The study concerns people with established coronary artery disease on statins, so it is not direct evidence for healthy adults. The 30-month duration and original sample size are useful, but this was a secondary analysis with a site-specific finding that needs replication.
EPA and DHA supplementation lowered oral and systemic inflammation, with the site-specific oral difference requiring further investigation.
This was a secondary analysis, and gingival-fluid data were available for 199 of 240 patients. The oral result was limited to one quadrant and may reflect handedness or toothbrushing behaviour; all outcomes were surrogate inflammatory measures.
Cited by
1 encyclopedia entries reference this study.