Omega-3 review finds no clear improvement in walking with peripheral artery disease
Compared with placebo, the studied supplements showed no detected change in walking distances or vascular measures. The findings leave uncertainty about particular formulations.
Based on the published abstract. The full paper may contain additional methods, results and limitations.
The 30-second takeaway
The review found no improvement in pain-free or maximal walking distance with the studied supplements compared with placebo. Vascular measures, inflammatory markers, cholesterol and blood pressure also showed no reported change. These results do not support a clear benefit in this population, but the evidence was insufficient to rule out effects of particular formulations.
The abstract reports neither pooled effect estimates nor confidence intervals and gives no assessment durations. That makes it difficult to judge how precisely the findings exclude potentially useful effects.
What researchers found
Pain-free and maximal walking distance
EPA alone or EPA plus DHA versus placebo across included studies; assessment durations were not reported in the abstract.
Function and vascular measures
Walking distance was a primary functional outcome, alongside ankle-brachial index and flow-mediated vasodilation. The absence of reported improvement extended to both pain-free walking and the maximum distance participants could walk.
Formulation questions remain
The authors leave open whether particular formulations could help selected groups. Their call for more research is an expression of uncertainty, rather than evidence that a different formulation or higher dose is effective.
The original publication
The effectiveness of intervention with omega-3 fatty acids, eicosapentaenoic and docosahexenoic acid in peripheral arterial disease: a systematic review and meta-analysis.
Dao TK, Nerlekar N, Nicholls SJ et al.
Nutr Metab Cardiovasc Dis · 2026
- PubMed ID
- 40940198
- Record checked
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