Natural Anti-inflammatory supps vs NSAIDs

[Anthon88]

Hey guys,

I know that NSAIDs are bad for bodybuilding. They mess with protein synthesis, hypertrophy, etc. What I am wondering is do natural anti inflammatory supplements carry the same negative affects in that respect? Things like white willow bark, Turmeric/Cucumin, enzymes like serrapeptase, and even really high doses of fish oil. I have been reading up on this stuff the last few days but it seems almost impossible to find a difinitive answer. Thanks in advance.

[primetime32]

I had been taking Advil for years for a bad back and more recently for wrist and elbow issues/tendonitis. Decided that advil wasn't doing much good (except for maybe masking the underlying issues) and opted for Fish oil, glucosamine/chond and Cissus. After a couple of months my tendonitis is virtually gone and my back is in the best shape in years. Can't give the switch full credit, but I think it is one of the main reasons for the improvement.

[Anthon88]

I had been taking Advil for years for a bad back and more recently for wrist and elbow issues/tendonitis. Decided that advil wasn't doing much good (except for maybe masking the underlying issues) and opted for Fish oil, glucosamine/chond and Cissus. After a couple of months my tendonitis is virtually gone and my back is in the best shape in years. Can't give the switch full credit, but I think it is one of the main reasons for the improvement.

Thanks for the feedback. Yeah I always take a generous dose of fish oil and I also enjoy cissus and joint formulas like what is in Orange Traid and Animal Flex. I am currently trying AP Nut Osteo-Sport (today was my first dose) and also a topical by E-Pharm (Joint Force). My knee has been really bad recently so I took some time off from squatting and also broke my rule about nsaids and have been taking motrin the past few days...it does feel a lot better but it is most likely still in bad condition. But my concern with these natty supps are whether or not they are bad for protein synthesis and hypertrophy as their nsaid counterparts.

[Anthon88]

Bumping for input from knowledgeable people

[BubbaDoc]

Anything that has anti inflammatory effects can potentially hinder protein synthesis.

[Clemenza]

I've taken Tumeric/Bromelain, high doses of fish oil, glucosamine msm etc. and have not found any of them to have POTENT anti inflammatory effects to the extent og NSAID's like Advil. Not to say they don't have their place. I take high doses of fish oil daily and glucosamine/chondroitin/msm when lifting heavy, and they do help. But if I have an injury they don't do the job Advil does. So I doubt they have the hindering effects of protein synthesis the way NSAIDs do.

But like I said, both have their place.

[robertmm94]

Anything that has anti inflammatory effects can potentially hinder protein synthesis.

OP look at No Hypes thread on anti inf and hypertrophy.
--May be anti ox and hypertrophy ( cant check atm)

I've taken Tumeric/Bromelain, high doses of fish oil, glucosamine msm etc. and have not found any of them to have POTENT anti inflammatory effects to the extent og NSAID's like Advil. Not to say they don't have their place. I take high doses of fish oil daily and glucosamine/chondroitin/msm when lifting heavy, and they do help. But if I have an injury they don't do the job Advil does. So I doubt they have the hindering effects of protein synthesis the way NSAIDs do.


But like I said, both have their place.

Curcumin and has been shown in studies to be quite good at lowering inflammation. IIRC i saw a study that compared it to a certain prescrip med. Albeit i didn't look carefully at the study.

[Mr.Cooper69]

I wouldn't be too worried about natural anti-inflammatories. Obviously I'd cease of certain such ingredients that interfere with ArA pathways while on XFA.

Oxytropis falcate ftw

[Anthon88]

Thanks for the replys guys.

OP look at No Hypes thread on anti inf and hypertrophy.
--May be anti ox and hypertrophy ( cant check atm)


Curcumin and has been shown in studies to be quite good at lowering inflammation. IIRC i saw a study that compared it to a certain prescrip med. Albeit i didn't look carefully at the study.

I'll search for that thread, thanks man.

[Luongo]

Hey guys,

I know that NSAIDs are bad for bodybuilding. They mess with protein synthesis, hypertrophy, etc. What I am wondering is do natural anti inflammatory supplements carry the same negative affects in that respect? Things like white willow bark, Turmeric/Cucumin, enzymes like serrapeptase, and even really high doses of fish oil. I have been reading up on this stuff the last few days but it seems almost impossible to find a difinitive answer. Thanks in advance.

i'm a med student, i've done research studies on NSAID usage, and yes it does interfere with the body's metabolic reactions, also it increases your chances of getting an ulcer five-fold. I'd highly suggest not taking NSAIDs like advil or aspirin recreationally unless it is absolutely necessary. Since you're asking this question my guess is that it's not absolutely necessary considering if protein synthesis is your concern right now. As a medical student, ezymes probably would have the same effect, however white willow bark I do not know of this as an alternative medicine. Fish oil should be fine though.

[Anthon88]

i'm a med student, i've done research studies on NSAID usage, and yes it does interfere with the body's metabolic reactions, also it increases your chances of getting an ulcer five-fold. I'd highly suggest not taking NSAIDs like advil or aspirin recreationally unless it is absolutely necessary. Since you're asking this question my guess is that it's not absolutely necessary considering if protein synthesis is your concern right now. As a medical student, ezymes probably would have the same effect, however white willow bark I do not know of this as an alternative medicine. Fish oil should be fine though.

Thanks for the reply. Ehh, idk, I debated about using NSAID's for my knee problem for quite some time now. When I went to the doc he pretty much said there was nothing wrong...but I know myself and it takes a lot for me to not be able to workout the way I want to. Playing sports I never came out of games due to injury, I would just play through. From lifting and playing sports most of my life I able to tell when something is not "right" as opposed to being sore, having a minor injury, etc. But I am concerned about the protein synthesis despite the injury because I hate jeopardizing potential gains. I only plan on using the NSAIDs for a few more days and then I will see where I stand. If it is still really bad I will go back to the doc. Thanks for the input.

[Anthon88]

OP look at No Hypes thread on anti inf and hypertrophy.
--May be anti ox and hypertrophy ( cant check atm)


Curcumin and has been shown in studies to be quite good at lowering inflammation. IIRC i saw a study that compared it to a certain prescrip med. Albeit i didn't look carefully at the study.

I read through it and another thread he had. Really interesting stuff. It seems like as with everything else, moderation is key. I don't think either way will make or break you. We are notorious for trying to find the "perfect" way to do things, ie; fasted cardio or cardio after a workout, etc etc. When the hard truth is, just do some dang cardio because some is better than none. So with this, if you need a NSAID in order to lift because of old injuries then use it and if you don't then don't. And we shouldn't totally disregard natural anti inflammatories because they have heaps of other numerous benefits.