Abstract
BackgroundGiven that acne is a rare condition in societies with higher consumption of omega-3 (n-3) relative to omega-6 (n-6) fatty acids, supplementation with n-3 may suppress inflammatory cytokine production and thereby reduce acne severity.Methods13 individuals with inflammatory acne were given three grams of fish oil containing 930 mg of EPA to their unchanged diet and existing acne remedies for 12 weeks. Acne was assessed using an overall severity grading scale, total inflammatory lesion counts, and colorimetry.FindingsThere was no significant change in acne grading and inflammatory counts at week 12 compared to baseline. However, there was a broad range of response to the intervention on an individual basis. The results showed that acne severity improved in 8 individuals, worsened in 4, and remained unchanged in 1. Interestingly, among the individuals who showed improvement, 7 were classified as having moderate to severe acne at baseline, while 3 of the 4 whose acne deteriorated were classified as having mild acne.ConclusionThere is some evidence that fish oil supplementation is associated with an improvement in overall acne severity, especially for individuals with moderate to severe acne. Divergent responses to fish oil in our pilot study indicates that dietary and supplemental lipids are worthy of further investigation in acne.
Highlights
Given that acne is a rare condition in societies with higher consumption of omega-3 (n-3) relative to omega-6 (n-6) fatty acids, supplementation with n-3 may suppress inflammatory cytokine production and thereby reduce acne severity
There is some evidence that fish oil supplementation is associated with an improvement in overall acne severity, especially for individuals with moderate to severe acne
Divergent responses to fish oil in our pilot study indicates that dietary and supplemental lipids are worthy of further investigation in acne
Summary
Given that acne is a rare condition in societies with higher consumption of omega-3 (n-3) relative to omega-6 (n-6) fatty acids, supplementation with n-3 may suppress inflammatory cytokine production and thereby reduce acne severity. A similar study of an Italian population found that consumption of fish was associated with a protective effect against moderate to severe acne [8] This inverse association between fish consumption and acne severity is expected because fish contains high levels of n-3 fatty acid eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) that acts as a competitive inhibitor of AA conversion to inflammatory mediators, PGE2 and LTB4, which leads to reduced inflammatory acne lesions [9]. Some of these mediators include n-6 eicosanoids, prostaglandin E2 (PGE2), and leukotrine B4 (LTB4) that are derived from arachidonic acid (AA), an n-6 polyunsaturated fatty acid. The objective of this study was to detect the isolated effects of EPA in the form of fish oil on severity of inflammatory acne in young healthy males
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