Tuesday, October 20, 2009

What Are The Benefits Of Fish Oil 3 Supplementation?

By Peter Bertonich

Even if you are not particularly interested in a healthy diet you have probably still heard about the benefits of fish oil. The 2 main essential fatty acids which are Omega3 fats are essential to good health and are found mainly in fish oil. 3 benefits of omega 3 fats follow, however there are plenty more.

There are 2 very important omega 3 fats called EPA Eicosapentaenoic acid) and DHA (Docosahexaenoic acid). It's not restricted to just 2, another omega 3 fatty acid called ALA is a plant-based Omega 3 fat however DHA and EPA are considered by far the most important.

The average American diet is very low in Omega3 sources. We eat far too much processed foods, sugar, salt and red meat and too little fish. In the past there was a reasonable amount of DHA to be found in red meat but modern feeding methods including grain feeding have reduced the levels of DHA to extremely low levels in red meat. To get more DHA and EPA in our diets we need to either start taking DHA supplements or eat more fish or both.

Here's 3 benefits to your health of increasing your dietary intake of essential Omega 3 fatty acids.

Improvements in brain health.

Science is now beginning to understand the importance of DHA to our brain. It is now seeded extremely important for the brain development of the fetus and infant that they have sufficient levels of DHA. Amongst older people DHA supplementation has been shown to improve our cognitive ability, our memory and our concentration.

2. Heart and cardiovascular health.

There are a range of reasons now accepted, for example by the American Heart Association, that adequate supplies of omega 3 improve our heart and cardio vascular health and reduce our risk of death. Our risk of death from heart attack can be reduced by increasing our intake of Omega3 fats. For this reason the AHA tell us that we should have a minimum intake of fish each week or supplement with fish oil supplements.

3. Improvements in age related conditions.

I have mentioned already the improvements in memory and concentration experienced by the age however there are more benefits to older people from taking in higher levels of Omega3 fats. 3 more benefits include a reduction in the risk of prostate cancer, a reduction in the risk of blindness due to macular degeneration and reduced pain and distress from the symptoms of arthritis.

A conservative organization such as the American Heart Association wouldn't recommend that we increase our intake of fish oil unless there was demonstrated benefits. Clearly we ought to be doing this given that studies show that residents of the US and Canada have some of the lowest levels of DHA in the world.

I hope that showing you a little more about the sorts of benefits you could experience from increasing your intake of fish oil. 3 benefits is really just the beginning, there's lots more.

Mercury contaminates our fish and as fish is expensive many of us rarely it. The very best fish oil supplements are entirely free of contaminants, are safe to take daily and are cost effective compared to eating fish.

But not all fish oil supplements are good supplements.Visit my website to find out how to compare Omega 3 supplements to find the best supplements that represent the best value.

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