Ibuprofen vs Omega-3 for pain & inflammation
Short answer: For pain & inflammation, users rate them about the same: 96% report improvement with Ibuprofen (25 reports) and 93% with Omega-3 (112 reports).
Ibuprofen has 511 meta-analyses and 1,743 randomized trials on PubMed; Omega-3 has 1,341 and 3,093.
Based on 83 reports about Ibuprofen and 3,026 about Omega-3. Not medical advice.
| Ibuprofen Medication | Omega-3 Supplement | |
|---|---|---|
| Users say it helped | 62%helped50 reports · medium confidence | 69%helped968 reports · high confidence |
| Verdict | Mostly positive | Mostly positive |
| Research | AResearch: Strong | AResearch: Strong |
| Meta-analyses / RCTs | 511 / 1,743 | 1,341 / 3,093 |
| Mainly used for | ||
| Mood % reporting improvement | 90% (10) | 86% (289) |
| Focus % reporting improvement | 100% (6) | 85% (172) |
| Pain & inflammation % reporting improvement | 96% (25) | 93% (112) |
| Heart & lipids % reporting improvement | — | 83% (108) |
| Anxiety % reporting improvement | 100% (5) | 74% (84) |
| Common side effects | stomach issues, headache, stomach ulcers, liver toxicity | fish burps, stomach issues, vivid dreams, fishy burps |
| Typical dose reported | Not listed | 500/250 mg / daily |
In this study, use of ibuprofen vs acetaminophen for the treatment of fever or pain in children younger than 2 years was associated with reduced temperature and less pain within the first 24 hours of treatment, with equivalent safety.
JAMA Netw Open, 2020 ↗“I've always had a positive response to ibuprofen and would take it morning and night if it wasn't for the side effects and agmatine provides the same anti-depressant effects of ibuprofen.”
For glycated hemoglobin, there was no significant effect in the meta-analysis. This systematic review with meta-analysis demonstrated that supplementation with omega-3 has protective effects on diabetes parameters.
Crit Rev Food Sci Nutr, 2022 ↗“I do supplement a lot of fish oil and vitamin A as retinyl palmitate though. It has really helped my depression, anxiety and ADHD and has enabled me to stop using more serious psychiatric drugs for those things.”
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Percentages come from first-hand user reports and are not clinical outcomes. Talk to a doctor before starting, stopping or combining anything. How we rate