The C.A.M. Report
Complementary and Alternative Medicine: Fair, Balanced, and to the Point
  • About this web log

    This blog ran from 2006 to 2016 and was intended as an objective and dispassionate source of information on the latest CAM research. Since my background is in pharmacy and allopathic medicine, I view all CAM as advancing through the development pipeline to eventually become integrated into mainstream medical practice. Some will succeed while others fail. But all are treated fairly here.

  • About the author

    John Russo, Jr., PharmD, is president of The MedCom Resource, Inc. Previously, he was senior vice president of medical communications at www.Vicus.com, a complementary and alternative medicine website.

  • Common sense considerations

    The material on this weblog is for informational purposes. It is not medical advice or counsel. Be smart, consult your health professional before using CAM.

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  • Recent Comments

    Four reviews of omega-3 fatty acids: lipids, asthma, retinitis pigmentosa, and cancer

    The literature reviews keep piling up. Here are the take home messages from 4 literature reviews of omega-3 fatty acids this year. One positive, three not positive or too soon to tell.

    Lipids

    • Adding omega-3-fatty acids lowers triglyceride levels in patients with hypertriglyceridemia

    Asthma

    • Few significant effects found
    • Impossible to determine whether omega-3 fatty acids alone or combined with other treatments is effective in children or adults with asthma

    Retinitis pigmentosa

    • Clinical research is preliminary in this field
    • Trends in improvement of some retinitis pigmentosa outcomes with omega-3 fatty acids in the higher quality studies

    Cancer risk

    • No significant associations between omega-3 fatty acid consumption and aerodigestive cancer (lips, mouth, tongue, nose, throat, vocal cords, esophagus, and windpipe), bladder cancer, lymphoma, ovarian cancer, pancreatic cancer, or stomach cancer
    • Mostly no benefit or negative effect on breast cancer, colorectal cancer, lung cancer, prostate cancer, advanced prostate cancer, and skin cancer
    • Dietary supplementation with omega-3 fatty acids is unlikely to prevent cancer

    10/21/06 11:19 JR

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