Rheumatoid Arthritis Support Group

I take two capsules a day, but I've heard with things like that or glucosamine chronditin that you need to take it daily so it builds up in your system. I am also on other medications for RA, but I feel like taking extra vitamins couldn't hurt since your body will flush out what it doesn't need. I would suggest trying it and on the bottle it gives dosage instructions!

By all means take your fish oil, it is high in omega 3 which is very good for you heart, also acts as an anti flam for your joints.
I take 4 capsules per day, have been on a trail for 6 months on a concentrated dose which is made out of krill (what the whales eat) it has done me no harm. hope this helps

Didn't do anything for me. My rhuemie said when trying a vitamin of any kind, give it 12 weeks to work. If afterthe 12 weeks there is no improvemet the vitamin is not going to work.

I think with RA and it's ups and downs it's often impossible to know what works and what doesn't. I probably wouldn't believe in fish oil, except that back when I had dogs I did some research and gave my Roxy fish oil pills every day for her ear infections which were constant. I really noticed a difference with her and they seemed to be way more beneficial than the Vet's ear drops which bothered her greately. I can tell you that I've read lots of wonderful things about fish oil, but RA is an unpredictable and painful disease that needs very strong medications. If nothing else, those Omega 3's are good for you even if you don't notice a difference. I do suggest one thing with fish oil. Find something that uses the small fish like sardines because they have less mercury. As well, I remember reading somewhere a fish oil that was purified three times. You might want to find it, because it sounded great. If you take cheap fish oils with mercury or other in them, then they can be more toxic to you than taking nothing at all. I hope that helps!
-Sarah

I'm wondering why people take fish oil: ant-inflammatory? cardiac health?. It's a good source of omega-3 fatty acids, but not the only source. I take flax seed oil, which I've seen reported to be twice or thrice as rich in omega-3 as fish oil. I started taking it because fish oil gives me indigestion. A former doctor told me fish oil was more easily absorbed by the body, but, like so many things, there are conflicting reports. Flax seeds have the advantage in that they are plants, not likely to have mercury or other heavy metals. Both omega-3 and omega-6 oils are "essential fatty acids," essential for growth. I forget what the optimal balance is (maybe 3:1, omega-6 to 3), and I know flax seed is weighted more toward 3's. BUT, most other oils (I only use olive for cooking), restore the balance.

Omega-6 fatty acids tend to be inflammatory, but omega-3's tend to be anti-inflammatory, and they do compete, so if you're getting a lot of omega-6 oils, you're probably cancelling out the anti-inflammatory benefits of the omega-3's.

And that's all I know. No, wait. Salmon, and sardines are great natural animal sources. There are some other good botanical sources, too. I try to eat salmon once a week (when you can, eat wild salmon; I can tell you more), and I love sardines, but they really give me indigestion. Anchovies anyone? I'm one of those people, and they're good, too!

I so want to take fish oil too, but I get the worst heartburn from it. I have tried about 4 different brands, and have even kept them in the freezer (someone told me that would help w/heartburn). All to no avail. Has anyone else had that problem? What did you do? Thanks, Lisa

I can't take fish oil, it will make me hypER from the Grave's Disease that I have. I use Flax seed oil, but not on daily basis. I try to take it every other day, but this doesn't happen as often as I like.

Good luck... :-)

I tried it and it did nothing. When I asked my rhuemie about supplements such as fish oil this is what I was told: take it for 12 weeks. If no improvement by then stop because it isn'[t going to help. Just that simple, that is what I did and after 12 weeks stopped because it did nothing.

I believe the fish oil has worked for me...My rheumy recommended 400 mg per day which meant minimum 4 tablets at 1000mg each. Firstly it cleared up my acne, and people have remarked on a glow on my skin. Secondly, I find that my selling/inflammation is lower, and yes I still take MTX which by itself was not helping the puffy knees and ankles, so I do think the fish oil works to a certain degree. The way I see it is that monega 3 is good for the body and helps the immune system, so every little helps.

I do find that certain brands repeat on my stomach and find that it helps taking with food. Nordic Naturals fish oil tablets were the least intrusive on my stomach. I have also started to supplement the fish oil with flaxseed which also has omega 3.

I took 9-12 capsules daily of the 1000mg-1200mg fish oil, then added 6 turmeric and 6 ginger capsules per day (2 with each meal). My inflammation did a nose dive. I now have normal sed and crp. Krill oil (shrimp, so avoid if you are allergic) may be better if you get indigestion with fish oil and if freezing the fish oil doesn't help. I'm still taking the fish oil and turmeric, but lower doses.