Can Fish Oil and Vitamin D Ease Lupus Symptoms?
Benefits for those with lupus
The most common form of lupus is called systemic lupus erythematosus. Those with SLE have immune systems that produce antibodies against the body’s tissues. This destruction damages the skin, heart, lungs, joints, brain, and kidneys. Up to 1.5 million Americans have lupus and most of those Americans are women.
At the annual meeting of the American College of Rheumatology in San Diego, studies looked at vitamin D and omega-3 fish oils. They found on average patients with low vitamin D had a 66 percent risk of kidney danger versus those with normal levels.
Dr. Michelle Petri of Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore stated, “Its known that a vitamin D helps reduce protein in the urine, which is a predictor of future kidney damage. So, it might explain why low vitamin D was specifically tied to that risk.” Dr. Petri went on to say that vitamin D can be safely prescribed to lupus patients. Kidney damage is a known complication of lupus.
