New from PubMed:

Crohn’s disease patients generally use immunosuppressive drugs as part of their maintenance therapy, which puts them at a higher risk for infection. Researchers at Robarts Research Institute in London, Ontario sought to determine if omega-3 free fatty acids could be used to prevent relapse for Crohn’s patients, without some of the side effects of immunosuppressive therapy. Data was analyzed on Crohn’s patients who received either 4 g per day of omega-3 free fatty acids or placebo, without receiving any other treatments for their Crohn’s disease. Of the 2 randomized, double-blind trials conducted, 1 trial yielded results of 31.6% relapse in patients who received omega-3 free fatty acids and 35.7% relapse in patients who received a placebo, while the other trial had 47.8% of patients receiving treatment relapse and 48.8% of patients receiving a placebo relapse. Serious side effects were uncommon. Based on these values, researchers concluded that omega-3 free fatty acids are not effective in preventing relapse in patients with Crohn’s disease.

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