Summary
The health potential of omega-3 fatty acids from fish oil on the skin compartment is still to be fully understood but many appealing points have already been highlighted by recent research. Their role in counteracting inflammation and in influencing signal pathways or cell membrane balance could represent key points for their potential use in certain skin disorders. Preliminary results obtained with oral supplementation of fish oil in psoriasis, atopic dermatitis, reactivity/sensitivity to sun exposure and photoageing are given and possible mechanisms are explored.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Berra B, Montorfano G, Negroni M, Corsetto P, Rizzo AM (2009) Long chain polyunsaturated fatty acids: Significance of the omega-6/omega-3 ratio Nutrafoods 8(2) 15–23
Simopoulos AP (1999) Essential fatty acids in health and chronic disease Am J Clin Nutr 70(suppl) 560S–569S
Miller CC, Ziboh VA, Wong T, Fletcher MP (1990) Dietary supplementation with n-3 and n-6 enriched oils influences in vivo levels of epidermal lipoxygenase products J Nutr 120 36–44
Miller CC, Tang W, Ziboh VA, Fletcher MP (1991) Dietary supplementation with ethyl ester concentrates of fish oil (n-3) and borage oil (n-6) polyunsaturated fatty acids induces epidermal generation of local putative antinflammatory metabolites J Invest Dermatol 96 98–103
Ziboh VA (2000) Metabolism of polyunsaturated fatty acids by skin epidermal enzymes: generation of antinflammatory and antiproliferative metabolites Am J Clin Nutr 71(suppl) 361S–366S
Ziboh VA, Cohen KA, Ellis CN, Miller C, Hamilton TA, Kragballe K, Hydrick CR, Voorhees JJ (1986) Effects of dietary supplementation of fish oil on neutrophil and epidermal fatty acids Arch Dermatol 122 1277–1282
Calder PC (2002) Polyunsaturated fatty acids, inflammation and immunity Eur J Clin Nut 56(Suppl 3) S14–S19
Cordain L (2005) Implications for the Role of Diet in Acne Semin Cutan Med Surg 24 84–91
Vowels BR, Yang S, Leyden JJ (1995) Induction of proinflammatory cytokines by a soluble factor of Propionibacterium acnes: implications for chronic inflammatory acne Infect Immun 63 3158–3165
Gollnick H (2003) Current concepts of the pathogenesis of acne Drugs 63 1579–1596
Guy R, Kealey T (1998) Modelling the infundibulum in acne Dermatology 196 32–37
Endres S, Ghorbani R, Kelley VE, Georgilis K, Lonnemann G, van der Meer JW, Cannon JG, Rogers TS, Klempner MS, Weber PC (1989) The effect of dietary supplementation with n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids on the synthesis of interleukin-1 and tumor necrosis factor by mononuclear cells N Engl J Med 320 265–271
Meydani SN, Endres S, Woods MM, BR Goldin, C Soo, A Morrill-Labrode, CA Dinarello, SL Gorbach (1991) Oral (n-3) fatty acid supplementation suppresses cytokine production and lymphocyte proliferation: comparison between young and older women J Nutr 121 547–555
James MJ, Gibson RA, Cleland LG (2000) Dietary polyunsaturated fatty acids and inflammatory mediator production Am J Clin Nutr 71(Suppl 1) 343S–348S
Mayer K, Meyer S, Reinholz-Muhly M, Maus U, Merfels M, Lohmeyer J, Grimminger F, Seeger W (2003) Short-time infusion of fish oil-based lipid emulsions, approved for parenteral nutrition, reduces monocyte proinflammatory cytokine generation and adhesive interaction with endothelium in humans J Immunol 171 4837–4843
Zhao Y, Joshi-Barve S, Barve S, Chen LH (2004) Eicosapentaenoic acid prevents LPS-induced TNF-alpha expression by preventing NF-kappaB activation J Am Coll Nutr 23 71–78
Trebble T, Arden NK, Stroud MA, Wootton SA, Burdge GC, Miles EA, Ballinger AB, Thompson RL, Calder PC (2003) Inhibition of tumour necrosis factor-alpha and interleukin 6 production by mononuclear cells following dietary fish-oil supplementation in healthy men and response to antioxidant co-supplementation Br J Nutr 90 405–412
Zouboulis CC, Nestoris S, Adler YD, Picardo M, Camera E, Orth M, Orfanos CE (2001) Treatment of inflammatory acne with an oral 5-lipoxygenase inhibitor J Invest Dermatol 117 547–549
Rhodes LE (1994) Dietary fish-oil supplementation in humans reduces UVB-erythemal sensitivity but increases epidermal lipid peroxidation J Invest Dermatol 103(2) 151–154
Rhodes LE, Durham BH, Fraser WD, Friedmann PS (1995) Dietary fish oil reduces basal and ultraviolet B-generated PGE2 levels in skin and increases the threshold to provocation of polymorphic light eruption J Invest Dermatol 105(4) 532–535
Blok VL, Blok WL, Katan MB, van der Meer JW (1996) Modulation of inflammation and cytokine production by dietary (n-3) fatty acids J Nutr 126(6) 1515–1533
Pupe A, Moison R, De Haes P, van Henegouwen GB et al (2002) Eicosapentaenoic acid, a n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid differentially modulates TNF-a, IL-1a, IL-6 and PGE2 expression in UVB-irradiated human keratinocytes J Invest Dermatol 118 692–698
Storey A, McArdle F, Friedmann PS, Jackson MJ et al (2005) Eicosapentaenoic acid and docosahexaenoic acid reduce UVB- and TNF-alpha-induced IL-8 secretion in keratinocytes and UVB-induced IL-8 in fibroblasts J Invest Dermatol 124(1) 248–255
Fisher GJ, Voorhees (1998) Molecular mechanisms of photoaging and its prevention by retinoic acid: ultraviolet irradiation induces MAP kinase signal transduction cascades that induce Ap-1-regulated matrix metalloproteinases that degrade human skin in vivo J Invest Dermatol Symp Proc 3(1) 61–68
Huang C, Schmid PC, Ma WY, Schmid HHO et al (1997) Phosphatidylinositol-3 kinase is necessary for 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate-induced cell transformation and activated protein 1 activation J Biol Chem 272(7) 4187–4194
Kim HH, Shin CM, Park CH, Kim KH, Cho KH et al (2005) Eicosapentaenoic acid inhibits UV-induced MMP-1 expression in human dermal fibroblasts J Lipid Res 46(8) 1712–1720 Epub Jun 1
Kim HH (2006) Photoprotective and anti-skin-aging effects of eicosapentaenoic acid in human skin in vivo J Lipid Res 47(5) 921–930 Epub 2006 Feb 7
Black HS (2006) The potential of omega-3 fatty acids in the prevention of nonmelanoma skin cancer Cancer Detect Prev 30(3) 224–232 Epub Jul 26 (Review)
Huerta C, Rivero E, Rodríguez LA (2007) Incidence and risk factors for psoriasis in the general population Arch Dermatol 143 1559–1565
Wolters M (2005) Diet and psoriasis: experimental data and clinical evidence Br J Dermatol 153(4) 706–714
Maurice PDL, Allen BR, Barkeley AS, Cockbill SR, Stammers J, Bather PC (1987) The effects of dietary supplementation with fish oil in patients with psoriasis Br J Dermatol 117 599–606
Bjornboe A, Smith AK, Bjornbeo GEA, Thune PO, Drevon CA (1998) Effect of dietary supplementation with n-3 fatty acids on clinical manifestations of psoriasis Br J Dermatol 118 77–83
Lassus A, Dahlgren AL, Halpern MJ et al (1990) Effects of dietary supplementation with ethyl ester lipids (angiosan) in patients with psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis J Int Med Res 18 68–73
Søyland E, Funk J, Rajka G, Sandberg M, Thune P, Rustad L, Helland S, Middelfart K, Odu S, Falk ES (1993) Effect of Dietary Supplementation with very-long-chain n-3. fatty acids in patients with psoriasis N Engl J Med 328(25) 1812–1816
Bittiner SB, Cartwright I, Tucker WFG et al (1988) A double-blind, randomized placebo-controlled trial of fish oil in psoriasis Lancet 1 378–380
Simopoulos AP (2002) Omega-3 fatty acids in inflammation and autoimmune diseases J Am Coll Nutr 21(6) 495–505
Soyland E, Lea T, Sandstad B, Drevon A (1994) Dietary supplementation with very long-chain n-3 fatty acids in man decreases expression of the interleukin-2 receptor (CD25) on mitogen-stimulated lymphocytes from patients with inflammatory skin diseases Eur J Clin Invest 24(4) 236–242
Horrobin DF (2000) Essential fatty acid metabolism and its modification in atopic eczema Am J Clin Nutr 71(Suppl 1) 367S–372S
Horrobin DF (1993) Fatty acid metabolism in health and disease: the role of delta-6-desaturase Am J Clin Nutr 57(Suppl 5) 732S–736S; discussion 736S-737S (Review)
Kato M, Nagata Y, Tanabe A, Ikemoto A et al (2000) Supplementary Treatment of Atopic Dermatitis Patients by Choosing Foods to Lower the N-6/N-3 Ratio of Fatty Acids J Health Sci 46(4) 241–250
Van Gool CJ, Zeegers MP, Thijs C (2004) Oral essential fatty acid supplementation in atopic dermatitis: metaanalysis of placebo-controlled trials Br J Dermatol 150(4) 728–740
Umeda-Sawada R, Umeda-Sawada R, Fujiwara Y et al (2006) Distribution and metabolism of dihomo-gamma-linolenic acid (DGLA, 20:3n-6) by oral supplementation in rats Biosci Biotechnol Biochem 70(9) 2121–2130 Epub 2006 Sep 7 Erratum in: Biosci Biotechnol Biochem 70(10) 2587
Henz BM, Jablonska S, van de Kerkhof PC, Stingl G et al (1999) Double-blind, multicentre analysis of the efficacy of borage oil in patients with atopic eczema Br J Dermatol 140(4) 685–688
Van Gool CJ, Thijs C, Henquet CJ et al (2003) Gamma-linolenic acid supplementation for prophylaxis of atopic dermatitis: a randomized controlled trial in infants at high familial risk Am J Clin Nutr 77(4) 943–951
Koch C, Dölle S, Metzger M, Rasche C, Jungclas H et al (2008) Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) supplementation in atopic eczema: a randomized, double-blind, controlled trial Brt J Dermatol 158(4) 786–792
Trak-Fellermeier MA (2004) Food and fatty acid intake and atopic disease in adults Eur Respir J 23 575–582
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Valla, C. Omega-3 fatty acids from fish oil. Nutrafoods 9, 33–39 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03223334
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03223334