Fish oil supplements reduce inflammation and anxiety

Omega-3 fish oils are an effective way to combat inflammation, which is being associated with more and more diseases – from heart problems and even cancer, new research has found.
The oil reduces inflammation and even anxiety, researchers found when they tested the supplement on a group of otherwise healthy young people.  They believe that the elderly and those who have already been diagnosed with a chronic condition will benefit even more.
Researchers from Ohio University recruited 68 young medical students, who were given standard omega-3 capsules – which delivered around four times the amount of oil that would come from a normal serving of an oily fish, such as salmon or tuna – or a placebo.
Those given the capsules showed a 20 per cent reduction in stress levels compared to the placebo group, according to profiling tests, and blood tests showed that inflammation levels had fallen by 14 per cent.
(Source: Brain, Behavior and Immunity, 2011; doi: 10.1016/j.bbi.2011.07.229).