Inflammation

Inflammation is the immune system’s response to infection and injury and it is a critical and important defence system. Resolution of inflammation is an active process switched on by specialised pro-resolving mediators (SPM); alternatively, an unresolved acute inflammatory response can persist and become chronic inflammation. Chronic inflammation is viewed as the persistence of an acute inflammatory response and is widely observed in chronic diseases, which have risen so dramatically in the western world in the last decades. These include diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, cancers and asthma, to name a few.

DHA and EPA fatty acids are precursors to several families of lipid mediators (resolvins, protectins and most recently the maresins) and these are both pro-resolving and anti-inflammatory.

A highly regulated inflammatory response and its timely resolution is the ideal outcome of an acute inflammatory response essential for health. Therefore, the cellular and molecular mechanisms that govern natural resolution are vital.

Dietary supplementation with fish oil rich in DHA and EPA has emerged as a therapeutic option for the prevention and treatment of many diseases associated with inflammation.

The composition of nutrients in Smartfish has shown beneficial immune-modulating effects in several clinical studies and experiments. Providing DHA and EPA, stabilised against oxidation in an emulsified nutritional formula as is found in Smartfish drinks, seems to provide enhanced modifying effects compared to standard fish oils.