Small Pilot Study Tests Krill Oil for Joint and Muscle Pain in Older Adults

This 12-week pilot study looked at whether older adults with ongoing musculoskeletal pain (like joint or muscle discomfort) could successfully take krill oil daily, and whether it was well tolerated. Forty adults aged 60 and older were randomly assigned to take either 4 grams per day of krill oil (providing about 1,288 mg of combined EPA and DHA) or a placebo for 12 weeks.

The main goal was to test feasibility: could researchers recruit enough participants, would people stick with the study, and would they take the supplement consistently? The answers were yes — recruitment goals were met quickly, 95% of participants stayed in the study, and adherence was strong in both groups, with acceptability rated fairly high.

Blood testing showed that krill oil raised participants’ Omega-3 Index from 4.3% up to 7.4%, getting closer to levels associated with lower cardiometabolic risk, while the placebo group saw no meaningful change. Exploratory (not primary) pain measures showed some encouraging trends in the krill oil group, including somewhat lower pain intensity, fewer painful body sites, and more reports of overall improvement, though these results are considered preliminary since the study was small and designed mainly to test feasibility rather than prove effectiveness.