From The February 2001 Issue of Nutrition Science News

Bone Loss and Fatty Acids

by Jack Challem

People often use omega-3 fatty acids to reduce the inflammation associated with arthritis. As it turns out, these fatty acids may actually help prevent bone loss. French researchers found that high levels of pro-inflammatory omega-6 fatty acids were strongly associated with bone loss in a group of 105 periodontal patients. The use of omega-3 supplements — 360 mg/day of eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and 240 mg/day of docasahexanoic acid (DHA) — appeared to decrease production of proinflammatory prostaglandin E2 in bone. Significantly, it also stopped bone loss.

Jack Challem, known as The Nutrition Reporter™, has been writing about vitamin research for 25 years and is the author of Syndrome X: The Complete Nutritional Program to Prevent and Reverse Insulin Resistance (Wiley, 2000).

Reference

1. Requirand P, et al. Serum fatty acid imbalance in bone loss: example of periodontal disease. Clin Nutr 2000;19:271-6.