OmegaEnergy Fish Oil

Blame Inflammation, Then Tune it Down With Omega-3

If you don’t consume enough omega-3 fatty acids, your body will experience an unwanted rise in inflammatory “markers”, such as TNF, Inter Leuken-1, and other cytokines. This inflammation, plus the added damage and inflammation caused by free radicals from sunlight, the environment, unhealthy foods, and aging can set the stage for serious inflammatory diseases. A powerful antioxidant such as omega 3 can help curtail inflammatory diseases.

Inflammation leads to or aggravates cardiovascular disease, asthma, arthritis, or even cancer.^{1, 2 Inflammation is also responsible for joint pain (from arthritis or from playing sports) and stiffness. Thankfully omega-3 reduces inflammation.}

Why is Omega-3 Fish Oil "Essential"?

Before examining the benefits of omega-3 fish oil, it is important to appreciate the importance of omega-3 essential fatty acids (EFAs). Omega-3 EFAs are considered “essential” because your body cannot make them. You can only get them from the food and supplements that make up your diet. Two main EFAs your body needs are eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA). Fish oil is a great source of both EPA and DHA. Plants contain the alpha-linolenic acid (ALA), an EFA that is only partially converted into EPA and DHA by the body. To improve your health with omega -3 EFAs, make sure to consume these essential fats through food and/or fish oil soft gels daily. Although one can get omega-3 from healthy sources of fish, nuts, and seeds, supplementation can provide excellent benefits.

What are the benefits of EPA and DHA?

EPA and DHA are essential for all ages, men and women alike. They are important for general wellness as well as disease prevention throughout the human lifespan—for infants, children, adults, and seniors. The following are some of the main benefits of EPA and DHA from omega-3 fish oils:

Omega-3 benefits for BRAIN:

The average human brain contains 20 grams of DHA so proper brain function is impossible without a steady supply of DHA. In fact, omega-3 EFAs play a role in maintaining normal neural functions that omega-6 fatty acids cannot play. EFAs are especially important for fetal brain development and growth.3
• As infants and toddlers grow, omega-3 EFAs can improve their ability to learn skills such as proper hand-eye coordination, socializing skills, and an appropriate attention span. They can even help improve test-taking skills and concentration. Omega-3 Fish Oil can help reduce the risk of ADHD. One scientific study reported that 50% of subjects categorized under the ADHD category took fish oil supplements for three months. Omega 3 fatty acids showed significant improvement in their learning problems, thus changing their potential ADHD status.⁴
• Omega-3 fish oils are also important throughout adulthood and during aging. Because omega-3 fish oils are protective against inflammation, they help prevent the decline in the brain’s cognitive function that leads to dementia. It also helps prevent or slow down the progression of brain shrinkage, degenerative brain diseases like Alzheimer’s, or schizophrenia.⁵
• Whether you have depression or not, it is important to understand the role of omega-3 fish oil in depression. A deficiency in omega-3 EFA’s makes one more vulnerable to depression. A natural way to prevent or treat depression without any unpleasant side effects is EnergyFirst Omega-3 Fish Oil. There appears to be a strong association between low DHA levels in the blood and low levels of the “happy hormone” serotonin. Since low levels of serotonin are strongly associated with depression and suicide it is important to prevent a deficiency of DHA with omega-3 EFAs.6 In one study, 64% of the manic-depressive patients who took fish oil reported a measurable improvement in their symptoms, as opposed to only 19% taking a placebo.⁷
• Omega-3 can even benefit patients with psychiatric disorders who often deal with cigarette smoking, excessive alcohol intake (which depletes neurons of DHA), obesity, and the metabolic side effects of certain psychotropic medications.⁸
• The central nervous system also reaps benefits from omega-3 EFAs. DHA and EPA are both involved in many neuronal processes, from regulating gene expression to maintaining healthy cell membrane fluidity. To understand the way omega-3 fats help maintain function of every cell in our body, it helps to consider how omega-3 works in fish like salmon. Wild salmon, which are high in omega-3 fatty acids, live in extremely cold water temperatures. How do their cells survive these cold temperatures? Instead of hardening, these fats stay fluid and flexible in cold water temperatures so that fish can still swim. Omega-3 fatty acids work much the same way in humans—they keep human cell membranes fluid, flexible, and healthy. This is especially important for our red blood cells. In order for red blood cells to safely and easily bend and flow through the smallest capillaries in our body, the cells need to be flexible. This assures that oxygen gets delivered to all cells.³

Omega-3 benefits for HEART:

• Your heart will later thank you for taking the recommended amounts of omega-3 now, before it’s too late. They are needed to improve heart health in both men and women. They help improve the health of your cardiovascular system, thus preventing heart attacks, strokes, and atherosclerosis.
• About 10 million Americans have irregular heartbeats—arrhythmias. Omega-3 fish oils are a natural way to improve arrhythmias or dangerous, life-threatening heart rhythms. Taking an easy-swallow soft gel is easier than implanting an invasive device inside your body or regularly taking medications that cause unpleasant side effects.⁹
• Face it. An unhealthy heart is fatal. Reduce the risk of coronary heart disease and cardiac death by up to 36% with a simple fish oil soft gel.¹⁰
• Omega-3 EFAs reduce stroke risk by decreasing the amount of dangerous blood clots in the veins. Also, lower blood pressure naturally by expanding the blood vessels with omega-3 fatty acids.¹¹

Omega-3 benefits for BONES:

• Studies have shown that a diet high in omega-3 fatty acids can strengthen bone health and structure. Preliminary studies show omega-3 fats can improve calcium absorption and reduce bone loss, possibly contributing to the prevention of bone diseases such as osteoporosis.^12-14

Omega-3 benefits for EYES:

• Prevent vision loss and age-related macular degeneration and or treat symptoms for dry eye syndrome with omega-3 fish oils.¹⁵

Omega-3 benefits for BONES::

• Studies have shown that a diet high in omega-3 fatty acids can strengthen bone health and structure. Preliminary studies show omega-3 fats can improve calcium absorption and reduce bone loss, possibly contributing to the prevention of bone diseases such as osteoporosis.^12-14

Omega-3 benefits for DIABETES:

• Effectively reduce dangerous levels of triglycerides with omega-3 fish oils by up to 50% to help prevent diabetes complications.16, 17 You may be relieved to find that omega-3 EFAs can help prevent both insulin resistance and diabetes by improving how the liver processes sugar.¹⁸

Omega-3 benefits for CANCER:

• Omega-3 fatty acids that are found in fish and fish oils are associated with reduced rates and risk of breast, colon, prostate, and rectal cancers.^{19, 20}

Omega-3 benefits for LUNGS:

• Omega-3 fatty acids can be help repair lungs damaged by cystic fibrosis, emphysema, or smoking.²¹

Omega-3 benefits for WEIGHT LOSS:

• Omega-3 EFAs can promote healthy weight loss by stopping the formation of fat (lipid synthesis). They may be useful in preventing weight gain by burning fat (fatty acid oxidation). ²²

Omega-3 benefits for PREGNANCY:

• Because new cells and tissues are forming, expectant mothers need to have a healthy diet to support pregnancy. DHA is important for fetus brain growth and eye development. Scientific research suggests that children need both DHA and EPA to develop learning, language, and memory skills. Low levels of these EFAs can impair healthy brain function during early phases of life as well as throughout the entire lifespan. Low omega-3 fatty acids are linked to brain disorders children often experience such as attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), dyslexia, dyspraxia, and autism spectrum disorders. ²³

Note: The following comparison chart addresses the cost of EPA/DHA rich omega-3 fatty acids per gram. While some reviewed products offer ingredients apart from EFAs that may yield health benefits, the cost of long chain omega-3s is the sole calculation for our purposes here.

References

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3 Pharmacological Research, Vol. 40, No. 3, 1999
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5 Exp Gerontol. 2010 May;45(5):375-80. Epub 2010 Mar 1
6 Lancet. 1998 Jul 4;352(9121):71-2
7 Arch Gen Psychiatry. 1999;56:407-412
8 J Clin Psychiatry. 2007 Feb;68(2)
9 Curr Opin Clin Nutr Metab Care. 2013 Mar;16(2):168-73
10 Am J Clin Nutr. 2008 Jun;87(6):1991S-6S
11 Am J Clin Nutr. 2006; 84:5–17
12 Curr Pharm Des. 2009;15(36):4157-64.
13 J Am Coll Nutr. 2001 Oct;20(5 Suppl):410S-416S;
14 Nutr J. 2007 Jan 16;6:2
15 Clin Interv Aging. 2013;8:741-8
16 http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/drugin-fo/natural/993.html
17 Ann N Y Acad Sci. 1993 Jun 14;683:16-34
18 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/P-MC2698663/?tool=pubmed
19 Cancer Prev Res; 4(12); 1–10. ©2011 AACR
20 IntJ Cancer March4002; 1:98(1):78-83
21 Am J Clin Nutr 2000; 71(1 Suppl):393S-396S
22 J Atheroscler Thromb. 2009 Oct;16(5):674-83
23 Eur J Pediatr. 2010 Feb;169(2):149-64. Epub 2009 Aug 12
24 ActaClin Croat. 2010 Dec;49(4):537-44
25 Circulation. 2013;127(1):e6-e245