Moving on…

Omega-3 fatty acids are considered to be a staple supplement found in many athletes tool box…but little do they know the potential role it plays in managing symptoms after a concussion.

Omega-3’s are comprised of two nutrients; EPA and DHA, where DHA is found in high concentrations within the central nervous system. Interesting, neuronal DHA quantities become reduced following injury where deficiency of DHA in the diet can worsen brain injuries…in rats (Wu et al, 2014).

This can then lead to neuronal cell death, slower recovery of motor function, mitochondrial dysfunction, more anxiety-like behaviours, and cognitive deficits (Desai et al, 2014). Very interestingly, animals that are supplemented with Omega-3’s become more resilient to brain damage, even following multiple concussions…(Guo et al, 2013).

So, this all sounds very cool, but…

As with most research into this area, it’s been done in rodents as finding volunteers who want to get knocked out voluntarily is somewhat limited, and highly unethical. By default, the dosages tested are performed in animals.

Of which, the prescribed dosage of DHA used in these studies are ~40mg/kg of bodyweight. I.e. the equivalent of 3200mg for an 80kg athlete.

By all means, this dose is much higher than general recommendations for health, however appear to have no negatives other than gastrointestinal symptoms and poor palatability…where a very small group may experience malodorous belching, nausea, diarrhea, and acid reflux.

Again, we are not rodents, so it’s difficult to know how these amounts will translate into human beings. However, this is a good ball park figure to start working off…

That being said, a long term study in American footballers (reported to have the highest rates of concussion) has shown that supplementing with DHA reduced brain damage as measured by changes in specific blood markers.

To note, all dosages (2, 4 and 6g DHA) improved brain health irrespective of dose when these players were exposed to frequent sub-concussive impact over a 189 day period (Oliver et al, 2016).

To conclude…Yep, it’s definitely worth considering.

I would.