POSEIDON study: a pilot, safety and feasibility trial of high-dose omega3 fatty acids and high-dose cholecalciferol supplementation in type 1 diabetes

The anti-inflammatory and immunomodulatory properties of high-dose omega-3 fatty acids and Vitamin D, and the initial encouraging results from case reports on the use of this supplementation in new-onset Type 1 Diabetes (T1D), support further testing of this combination strategy. This intervention appears to be well tolerated, affordable, and sufficiently safe to be further tested in randomized prospective trials to determine whether this combination therapy may be of assistance to halt progression of autoimmunity and/or preserve residual beta-cell function in subjects with new onset and established T1D of up to 10 years duration. In addition, the 1st PreDiRe T1D conference (Preventing Disease and its Recurrence in Type 1 Diabetes - see Editorial in this issue) was organized to discuss initial results and possible alternative/complementary strategies, for collaborative international expansion of these trials, to include strategies for disease prevention. Our POSEIDON clinical trial will test the use of high dose vitamin D3 and highly purified Omega-3 fatty acids in new onset and established T1D. The draft of the study protocol, in addition to the informed consent and assent, is now shared open access to facilitate its international implementation by interested physicians and centers that would like to further test this approach through clinical trials.