Friday, December 4, 2009

How Do You Get More Omega 3 Fatty Acids In Your Diet If Fish Is Contaminated With Mercury?

By Peter Bertonach

The health benefits of omega3 essential fatty acids are becoming more and more mainstream, and gradually the population is becoming aware that most of us are deficient in their Omega3 intake and that increasing our intake of essential fatty acids may help improve a number of health outcomes for all of us. Omega3 fatty acids are found in fish oil and this obviously comes from fish, however fish is generally contaminated with Mercury. So what do you do increase your intake of healthy fats if the source, namely fish, is contaminated with Mercury?

There has been a study published this year which has looked at Mercury contamination of fish in the North Pacific Ocean. It found that the level of Mercury in the North Pacific has increased 30 percent over 10 years from'96 to 2006.

Not only that but it also concluded that around 40 percent of all Mercury exposure of people in the US came from tuna consumption from tuna caught in the Pacific.

This is concerning. Mercury is a serious environmental toxin and is no good for our health when we consume it. It is a neurotoxin and has serious implications for the developing fetus and infant.

The major causes of Mercury contamination in the Pacific were found to be atmospheric Mercury production as well as Mercury leakage from parts of Asia. The Mercury is in the form of methylmercury, and this works it's way from the bottom of the food chain to the major fish at the top of the food chain such as tuna and shark, both of which feature largely in our intake of fish.

So the conundrum for anyone that understands the importance of increasing their intake of omega3 fatty acids, and who also understands that the vast majority of our population is deficient in Omega3 fats, is that by increasing your intake of fish to increase your intake of Omega3 fats you are also increasing your intake of Mercury.

Fish is also a declining resource and over time the price of fish is going up and up. Is there a better way than eating fish to improve your levels of Omega3 fatty acids in your diet? Yes there certainly is.

Much more cost-effective than eating fish and also safer is to increase your Omega3 intake levels by daily supplementation with omega3 supplements. These are much more cost-effective than buying fish and the very best fish oil supplements are free of Mercury contamination and are safe to be taken daily. As a result of these fats the sales of fish oil supplements are increasing faster than any other nutritional supplement in history.

If you like eating fish then by all means increase your intake and this improves your dietary intake of omega3. However by doing so you are also increasing your intake of Mercury, as well as affecting your budget. But if you'd prefer to avoid the cost of buying fish as well is the risks of eating Mercury then omega3 supplements are certainly a much more cost-effective and are safer way to do so.

It is however worth noting that there wide variations in the quality of the various supplements available, and that the best fish oil supplements contain almost 3 times as much Omega3 fats as average capsules.

If you'd like to find out how to compare the different omega3 supplements available then you can do so on my website.

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