A new study suggests combining omega-3 supplementation with exercise for stronger bones

It’s long been known that adequate intake of certain nutrients such as calcium and vitamin D, along with an active lifestyle, are important factors for promoting bone health during aging. Women are especially susceptible to the frailty, fractures and morbidity that accompany age-associated bone loss and osteoporosis. Now, before you lace up your tennis shoes for your next walk or run, or hit the weights, perhaps you should add omega-3 fatty acids from fish oil to your bone-enhancing arsenal.

In a just-published study in the journal Nutrition and Metabolism, researchers from the Urmia University in Iran, in collaboration with the University of Missouri, have evaluated the synergistic effects of six months of fish oil and aerobic exercise on biomarkers of inflammation and bone health in 79 post-menopausal women aged 58 to 78. They also determined whether fish oil and exercise alone could affect these markers implicated in bone loss.

The treatments consisted of a control group, an exercise alone group, a group that only supplemented with 1 gram of fish oil containing 180 milligrams EPA and 120 milligrams DHA, and a group that combined the fish oil supplementation with aerobic exercise consisting of walking or jogging for 25 to 30 minutes per day for three or four days a week.

After six months of intervention, the researchers found that those women in the exercise and supplement group had significantly lower biomarkers of inflammation (c-reactive protein, prostaglandin E2 and interleukin-6), and increases in their serum vitamin D, estrogen and bone mineralization compared with the control subjects. For many markers of bone health and inflammation, the supplement alone and exercise alone groups also tended to observe benefits, although less than in the combined exercise and supplement group. In addition, the researchers linked inflammation and bone mineralization, and reported a strong negative association between bone mineral density and inflammatory mediators, indicating that those individuals who increased bone health also had less inflammation.

According to the authors, “These findings clearly show that the combination of PUFA [polyunsaturated fatty acid] supplementation with aerobic exercise provides numerous benefits on bone density and inflammation over exercise alone or supplementation alone.”

Finally, the authors noted that, “These changes in inflammatory indices following long-term aerobic exercise training and N-3 PUFA [omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid] supplementation may contribute significantly to the inverse relationship between inflammatory markers and osteoporosis.”

So to maximize your workout and minimize age-associated bone loss, consider the following—stretch, exercise, and follow your workout with a glassful of healthy, muscle-promoting IsaLean Shake along with a packet of Ageless Essentials Daily Pack containing bone-building calcium, vitamin D, vitamin K2, and purified, potency-guaranteed fish oil!

Reference: Tartibian B et al. Long-term aerobic exercise and omega-3 supplementation modulate osteoporosis through inflammatory mechanisms in post-menopausal women: a randomized, repeated measures study. Nutrition & Metabolism 2011;8:71 doi: 10.1186/1743-7075-8-71.