Omegas vs. Aspirin

Our bodies are so amazing in the fact that they are able to initiate a response to help us fight off illness. We usually think of inflammation as something that is negative, but our bodies natural inflammatory responses, if healthy and at the right time and length, is absolutely critical to our survival.  natural inflammatory response, one like if you sprain an ankle, would be for the body to release certain hormone like substances called prostaglandins to get to work in starting the healing process. 

Part of a healthy healing process involves an increase in inflammation to help the body begin to heal. There are three different groups of prostaglandins, prostaglandin-1 (PG1), prostaglandin (PG2) and prostaglandin 3 (PG3). Both PG1 and PG3 are anti-inflammatory and PG2 is inflammatory, but all are necessary and needed for proper healing, repair growth and homeostasis in the body. Inflammation is a normal part of the body's healing response, but there is often pain associated with inflammation. In this event, many people reach for anti-inflammatory drugs, like aspirin, NSAIDS and steroids to help decrease inflammation in order to decrease their pain. These drugs are able to decrease pain by suppressing the production of PG2 which in turn also delays the body's healing processes. The essential fatty acid arachidonic acid is converted into PG2 by a series of different enzymatic actions. Anti-inflammatory drugs block normal prostaglandin function by inhibiting this process therefore suppressing pain and inflammation. 

In order for our bodies to create prostaglandins, certain cofactors are needed. These cofactors include proper digestion, proper liver function and different enzymes like amino acids, vitamin B6, magnesium and zinc. The standard american diet is void of many of these cofactors which naturally means that the conversion to prostaglandins  will not happen. Not only do anti-inflammatory drugs and a diet void in the cofactors mentioned above contribute to the lack of prostaglandin formation but so do trans fatty acids and alcohol. 

The general population experiences pain and their first instinct is to go to the medicine cabinet and to pop an aspirin. In reality, most americans are experiencing inflammation leading to various sorts of pain because of the high inflammatory diet and excessive amounts of omega-6’s we eat daily leading to a high imbalance between omega 3 and omega 6 fatty acids. An alternative to reaching for that anti-inflammatory pill would be for individuals to begin to take note and pay attention to the imbalance of  fatty acids. Individuals should begin to consume more anti-inflammatory omega-3’s and work towards consuming a nutrient dense whole foods diet with a balance of all three macronutrients. Anti-inflammatory drugs have their place in some instances, but they are definitely over used and people depend on them way too much in our society. It is important to try and improve fatty acid balance before taking harmful anti-inflammatory drugs that can lead to serious side effects if taken long term.