Fish Oils

Athletes who experience asthma-like symptoms, such as shortness of breath after exercise, may find relief from fish oil supplements, reports a recent study in the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine.

Exercise can often trigger symptoms like chest tightness, wheezing, and breathlessness in individuals who suffer from asthma and even those who don’t. Conventional treatment for this problem is generally medication. However, fish oil supplements appear to exert similar anti-inflammatory effects.

The study followed 20 elite athletes, half of whom experience asthma-like symptoms after exercise and half who don’t. Participants were randomly chosen to receive either fish oil capsules containing 3.2 grams of eicosapentaenoic acid and 2.2 grams of docosahexaenoic acid or placebo capsules containing olive oil for three weeks. After a two-week cleansing period, volunteers switched groups.

Although fish oil supplements did not affect lung function in athletes who do not usually experience symptoms after exercise, it decreased symptoms in asthma sufferers by nearly 80 percent. It is important to note the small size of this study, but fish oil supplements appear to be a promising treatment for exercise-induced asthma-like symptoms.