Food and supplement question

I am new to this group and want to see what experiences folks have had with foods to eat and supplements to take. I have read contradicting articles about eating salmon and taking flaxseed oil supplements for this disease. I would appreciate any good input.

Welcome to the PDSA. You'll find a lot of discussion about vitamins, minerals, various foods including those high in omega-3 fatty acids, and other, more esoteric items.

My hematologist put me on several supplements on top of the ones my primary care physician has me taking due to deficiencies found on blood tests. My view is that these supplements are only worth taking if you have a known deficiency; otherwise they are not likely to do much of anything. Other people may disagree with me on this point.

Regarding foods high in omega-3 fatty acids, I regularly use flax oil on my vegetables, eat salmon about once a week, and take a baby aspirin almost daily. My platelet count is not high enough to require avoiding these items, all of which deactivate platelets and so may increase bleeding risk.

In general, your counts and particular symptoms guide these choices. Ideally, your hematologist will provide guidance and advice, too. Also, people's experiences do vary, and what works for one person may not for another person.

Thanks for the response. So Omega 3's inhibit platelet growth is what you are saying.

Not quite. Omega 3's make the platelets kind of slippery so they won't stick together and do the job as well.

A few years back I took Childrens gummy Omega 3 supplements when my counts were around 15K. I had no bruises before taking the vitamins, but within a day had bruises all over my arms. It took me a few days to figure it out. I quit taking the Omega 3 vits and bruises went away in 24-48 hrs.

I eat salmon every 1-2 weeks, never noticed a problem. I do not take flaxseed oil or any fish/veg oil supplements because of how it might affect platelets.