Fish oils aid spine pain

In this study 125 patients with pain in the spine who were taking NSAIDs (drugs such as ibuprofen or naproxen that inhibit inflammation and help with pain) were supplemented with Fish Oil capsules. Two weeks after starting the Fish Oils the patients were asked to discontinue their NSAIDs. Within 4 weeks 59% had stopped using NSAIDs and a larger percentage (some still on NSAIDs) reported greater pain relief using the Fish Oils or by adding the Fish Oils to their NSAIDs. The study appears in the April 2006 issue of the journal Surgical Neurology.

Commentary by Jerry Hickey, R.Ph.

Yesterday we reported that taking a combination of Vitamin C, Vitamin E, and ibuprofen prevented the onset of Alzheimer's disease in patients who inherited a gene from their parents that puts them at high risk of developing Alzheimer's disease.

Resveratrol improves blood flow to brain in animal study

Improving blood flow to the brain may decrease the risk of stroke and brain neuronal cell death. In this study rats had the flow of blood to their brain inhibited on average by 65%. Giving Resveratrol prevented such a drastic reduction of blood flow to the brain with a drop in the reduction from 65% to 35% which overall improved brain blood flow by 20%. This also protected the animals reducing the possibility of brain cell death. The study is published in the current issue of the journal Agricultural and Food Chemistry.