Crohn's disease is an inflammatory disease involving intestinal pain, diarrhea, and malabsorption of nutrients. The disease is characterized by periods of active disease interspersed with periods of remission. Elemental diet (ED) therapy is the preferred treatment in Japan. Conventional treatment with prednisone and salycylates has been only marginally successful in extending the periods of remission. The ED therapy involves tube feeding (enteral nutrition) a mixture of free amino acids, short-chain maltodextrins, and low levels of fat in the form of soybean oil. Not surprisingly, compliance with this diet is poor resulting in shorter periods of remission.
Crohn's disease is characterized by periods of active disease interspersed with periods of remission. Now researchers at the University of Bologna report that fish oils prevent relapses. Their experiment involved 78 patients with Crohn's disease who had been classified as having a high risk of relapse. Half the patients were randomized to receive nine fish oil capsules daily, the other half received nine placebo capsules daily. The fish oil capsules contained 500mg of a marine lipid concentrate each (40% eicosapentaenoic acid and 20% docosahexaenoic acid) and provided a total of 2.7 grams of n-3 fatty acids per day. The capsules were enteric-coated so as to ensure that they dissolved in the small intestine instead of in the stomach and to minimize unpleasant side effects such as flatulence, heartburn, belching, and diarrhea.
The results of the fish oil therapy were spectacular. While 69 per cent of the patients in the control group had a relapse during the one-year study period, only 28 per cent in the therapy group did. At the end of the one-year period 59 per cent of the patients in the fish oil group were still in remission as compared to only 26 per cent in the placebo group. The researchers conclude that fish oil therapy (with enteric-coated capsules) is effective in preventing relapses in patients with Crohn's disease in remission
Crohn's disease is characterized by periods of active disease interspersed with periods of remission. Now researchers at the University of Bologna report that fish oils prevent relapses. Their experiment involved 78 patients with Crohn's disease who had been classified as having a high risk of relapse. Half the patients were randomized to receive nine fish oil capsules daily, the other half received nine placebo capsules daily. The fish oil capsules contained 500mg of a marine lipid concentrate each (40% eicosapentaenoic acid and 20% docosahexaenoic acid) and provided a total of 2.7 grams of n-3 fatty acids per day. The capsules were enteric-coated so as to ensure that they dissolved in the small intestine instead of in the stomach and to minimize unpleasant side effects such as flatulence, heartburn, belching, and diarrhea.
The results of the fish oil therapy were spectacular. While 69 per cent of the patients in the control group had a relapse during the one-year study period, only 28 per cent in the therapy group did. At the end of the one-year period 59 per cent of the patients in the fish oil group were still in remission as compared to only 26 per cent in the placebo group. The researchers conclude that fish oil therapy (with enteric-coated capsules) is effective in preventing relapses in patients with Crohn's disease in remission