PITTSBURGH -- Dr. Joseph Maroon is a UPMC neurosurgeon, professor and Steelers physician. He’s also a very active triathlete.

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Over the years he’s experienced joint and back pain and says, “I’ve tried Celebrex, Vioxx, Bextra, all anti-inflammatory drugs and had all the side effects -- gastric upset, allergic reactions.”

Looking for alternatives, he discovered Omega 3 Fatty acid and began taking it. It helped his joint pain so much he was able to stop taking prescription nonsteroidal anti-inflammatories (NSAISs).

He began recommending fish oil to many of his patients who are athletes. They began reporting positive results and were also able to get off pharmacological agents.

That led to his patient study which also bore out his results. However, Maroon said not all fish oils are the same.

He recommends his patients take a pharmaceutical grade fish oil. "Pharmaceutical grade means the product is highly concentrated as well as micro distilled, so all impurities are out of it," Maroon said.

Maroon said EPA and DHA are the two active ingredients in Omega 3 fish oils that result in the anti-inflammatory changes in the blood.

To get the therapeutic effect, he said you need 1.5 to 3.5 grams of EPA DHA content a day.

Because of that he said you would end up taking 4 to 12 capsules of most over the counter fish oils to get the same dose. Because the pharmaceutical-grade product is concentrated, you take fewer capsules.

Another positive effect from pharmaceutical-grade fish oil is you shouldn’t burp a fishy taste or smell, which often keeps people from taking the supplement.

Pharmaceutical-grade fish oil is not prescription. You can get it at some doctor's offices and on the internet.

Maroon sells pharmaceutical-grade fish oils on his Web site at inflammationsolutions.com.