Over the counter pills key to combating arthritis, say experts

                                                  By: Jo WilleyPublished: Sat, July 12, 2014

骨質性關節炎圖  By James Heilman MD from wikipedia

The pills, which contain omega 3 fatty acids, can ease the crippling pain that blights the lives of millions.

Scientists’ discovery – tested on mice – means that sufferers from osteoarthritis could transform their lives by taking the over-the-counter 20p supplement.

The alternative is to boost the levels of omega 3 in the diet by eating more fish, nuts and seeds packed with the essential fat. Researchers in the US reached their conclusion after discovering osteoarthritis is linked more to diet than to body weight.

Dr Farshid Guilak said: “Our results suggest that diet plays a more significant role than mechanical factors in the link between obesity and osteoarthritis.”

He and his team at Duke University Medical Centre, in North Carolina, studied mice with osteoarthritis of the knee caused by injury to the joint. Their research, published in the journal Annals Of The Rheumatic ­Diseases, suggests that unhealthy ­dietary fats – not just obesity – may make osteoarthritis worse.

Dr Guilak said: “While omega 3 fatty acids aren’t reversing the injury, they appear to slow the progression of arthritis. In fact, omega 3 fatty acids eliminated the detrimental effects of obesity.” Mice consuming a supplement of omega 3 fatty acids were found to have healthier joints than those fed diets high in saturated fats and omega 6 fatty acids.

Saturated fat, which usually comes from animal sources, is known to raise cholesterol levels. Omega 6 fatty acids are found in corn oil, soya bean oil, nuts and seeds.

Omega 3 fatty acids, commonly found in fish or fish oil supplements, are often touted as “healthy fat” given their anti-inflammatory properties.

Fish oil supplements are said to protect against heart attacks and stroke, boost brain power and prevent behavioural disorders in children.

Obesity is one of the main risk factors for osteoarthritis, although why the two conditions are linked is not fully understood. It had been assumed that increased weight wears out the joints.

According to Arthritis Research UK, the NHS spends £5.2billion a year on the condition
But experts say this does not explain why arthritis is also found in the fingers and hands.

Professor Alan Silman, medical director of Arthritis Research UK, said: “Research is increasingly confirming that omega 3 fatty acids sourced from fish oil can slow the progression of osteoarthritis in animals and that the benefits of fish oil for joint health are not simply old wives’ tales.

“Most diets in the developed world are lacking in omega 3, with modern diets having up to 30 times too much omega 6 and too little omega 3.

“Taking omega 3 could help redress this imbalance. However, we now need studies that confirm that it can also be effective in humans.”

More than eight million Britons suffer from osteo­arthritis, which occurs when cartilage at the ends of bones wears away, leading to stiff, painful joints.

There are few treatments other than painkillers and joint replacement.

According to Arthritis Research UK, the NHS spends £5.2billion a year on the condition, including 77,000 knee and 66,000 hip replacements.

A fifth of people over 45 have osteo­arthritis in a knee. Trauma or injury is thought to account for 10 to 15 per cent of cases.

The US researchers also looked at how omega 3 affected mice’s ability to heal. In those taking omega 3, a small ear wound healed much more quickly than it did in animals that did not receive the supplement.

Biomedical engineering student Chia-Lung Wu said: “We found that, independent of body weight, dietary fatty acids regulate ear wound healing and severity of osteoarthritis following joint injury in obese mice.”

專家證實可以攝取魚油來對抗關節炎    轉譯自英國每日快報 2014-7月-12日

骨質性關節炎的軟骨圖 ByRikke K Kirk, Bente Jørgensen, Henrik E Jensen                       from wikipedia

由美國北卡羅來納州杜克大學(杜克大學為美國前10名以內的名校)醫學院教授-法許-桂卡爾的動物實驗結論所顯示:實驗中患有關節炎的老鼠,在補充了魚油Omega-3不飽和脂肪酸成份的補充劑之後,比起食用飽和脂肪酸(主要源自豬牛等家畜類食材來源)以及Omeg-6不飽和脂肪酸(以玉米油,大豆油,堅果和種子油為主)的相同關節炎症狀老鼠,顯然要擁有更為健康的關節(依照實驗結論所顯示,Omega-3不飽和脂肪酸成份雖然無法逆轉關節炎的症狀,但卻能實質有效的延緩關節炎的進展,特別是肥胖所導至的骨質性關節炎)情況!而這項杜克大學醫學院的臨床動物實驗結論,也因為極俱醫療價值(魚油的一般傳統功用,以保護心臟和預防中風,以及促進腦部眼睛功能與降低兒童行為異常為世人所熟悉),進而被正式發表在專業的類風濕性關節炎的期刊年鑑上!

而除了杜克大學醫學院的魚油臨床動物實驗結論以外,英國關節炎醫學中心的指導教授艾倫-賽門也背書了杜克大學醫學院的魚油臨床實驗結論!艾倫-賽門教授同時指出:經由愈來愈多的臨床實驗結果所顯示,魚油毫無疑問已經被確認為具有延緩骨質性關節炎的效果!而這可不是什麼古老的傳說在做戲!此外在已開發中國家的飲食習慣中,Omega-3不飽和脂肪酸成份的食物不單呈現普遍性的不足(魚類都快要被吃光了),甚至於連會引導關節炎發進展的Omeg-6不飽和脂肪酸攝取量,竟然都是Omega-3不飽和脂肪酸成份的30倍!以至於在英國目前約有8百萬的人患有骨質性關節炎(相當於45歲以上的英國成年人,每5個人就又有一個人罹患了骨質性關節炎),而英國政府每年光花在治療骨質性關節炎的支出費用,據估計就約有52億英磅(2392億新台幣),其中主要以關節炎止痛用藥及人工關節置換為主要支出項目;鑒於醫療治關節炎背後的龐大利益,現在就連美國研究學者也開始把注意力放到了樸實的魚油身上?!認為魚油醫治關節炎的的效果,的確值得去仔細比較分析!?而這種發展趨勢,正如醫學生物工程系的吳同學所說:我們已經發現了魚油的另一項功效!撇開肥胖所引起的骨質性關節炎原因不談,飲食中的脂肪酸種類成份,可能才是能真正控制關節炎進展的關鍵因素所在?!只是以往我們都把注意力放在了肥胖體重上?卻渾然不知好東西就在身旁?!

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