• Posted August 12, 2026

Aspirin/Omega-3 Combo Matches Antibiotics In Treating Gum Disease, Trial Finds

People with severe gum infections might be able to forego antibiotics by taking low-dose aspirin and omega-3 fatty acid supplements instead.

Patients’ gum disease improved just as well with an aspirin and omega-3 treatment as it did with antibiotics, researchers reported recently in the Journal of Periodontology.

“The result was surprising because the two therapies performed very similarly, paving the way for it to become a treatment option for these patients," said lead researcher Nidia Castro dos Santos. She is a professor at the Albert Einstein Israelite Hospital in São Paulo, Brazil.

Advanced gum disease, also called periodontitis, occurs when bacteria accumulate beneath the gums, affecting the tissues that support the teeth, researchers said in background notes.

“Patients with severe disease have very deep pockets, which act as reservoirs for bacteria associated with the disease,” Castro said. “It’s a very challenging condition to treat.”

Previous clinical trials have suggested that a combination antibiotic therapy is the best way to clear up this bacteria, researchers said, especially when combined with a thorough dental cleaning.

But researchers suspected that using anti-inflammatory treatments might also help treat gum disease. Omega-3 fatty acids promote the production of biochemicals involved in the natural resolution of inflammation and tissue repair, and aspirin adds to this effect, researchers said.

For the new study, more than 100 patients were randomly assigned to one of four groups. All groups received dental cleaning, a procedure known as “scaling,” but three of the groups also received:

• Antibiotic treatment three times a day for 14 days

• Treatment with low-dose aspirin and three grams of omega-3 supplements for six months

• Combined antibiotic/aspirin/omega-3 treatment

Nearly 58% of patients who received the antibiotics, the aspirin/omega-3 combination or the whole magilla experienced improvement in their gum disease. That was more than double the 23% who saw improvement with dental cleaning alone.

The results ran counter to researchers’ expectations.

“We imagined that the combination of antibiotics and omega-3 would be most effective in controlling periodontitis in these patients," Castro said. "We also believed that the results for the group that used omega-3 with (aspirin) would be slightly lower than those for the antibiotic group.”

Even six months after the supplements ended, patients continued to show results similar to those recorded at the end of their treatment, researchers noted.

The alternative anti-inflammatory treatment may be helpful in light of antibiotic resistance, co-author Dr. Magda Feres said in a news release. She is the chair of oral medicine, infection and immunity at Harvard School of Dental Medicine in Massachusetts.

“The combination of omega-3 and low-dose aspirin achieved clinical benefits comparable to those of the metronidazole and amoxicillin protocol, opening up a real alternative for those who can’t take antibiotics, especially patients with allergies or intolerance to these medications,” Feres said.

More information

The American Dental Association has more on periodontitis.

SOURCE: São Paulo State Research Support Foundation, news release, Aug. 6, 2026