The Health Benefits Of Omega 3 Fish Oils Explained

You're not quite ready to believe the hype about the benefits of Omega 3 fish oils yet are you?

Many of us have heard all about Omega 3 fats and the health benefits that you're supposed to get from fish oil supplements. But what are the benefits and are they proven? And should you be taking Omega 3 capsules, or can you just eat more fish?

These are good questions and ones that I will be trying to answer here. Are the benefits of fish oils really "proven' or are the benefits really just illusory or "alternative"? Not accepted by modern medicine.

The simple answer is this. The AHA (American Heart Association) tell us that we should be taking more Omega 3 fatty acids into our diets and recommends a minimum amount of fish to eat each week. Now the AHA is no alternative organization, it's pretty mainstream and if they tell me that Omega 3 fats are good for my heart I'll believe them.

Leta have a look at what more fish oil does for us. It's full of good stuff like DHA (docosahexaenoic acid) and EPA (eicosapentaenoic acid). These are the most essential  Omega 3 fats, DHA in particular. Is it "proven"that these are good for you? When is anything proven? I still know a mainstream doctor who says that excess cholesterol isn't bad for you at all. There's always experts on both sides of the argument.

1. Cardio vascular health.

A decrease in bad cholesterol. An increase in good cholesterol. A reduction in blood pressure. A reduced risk of stroke. Those are the big heart health benefits of Omega 3 fats.

2. Reduction in risks of aging related problems

The risks of ill health rise with age, and Omega 3 fats can assist with this. Benefits include a decrease in the risk of macular degeneration with age, the number one cause of blindness in the over 65s A decrease in the risk of Alzheimers with aging A decrease in the risk of dementia with aging

And as fish oil reduces the risks of heart attacks this is extremely good news for sufferers of diabetes, who have up to a 6 fold increase in risk of death due to heart attack.

3. And there's skin improvements.

There are many natural oils in our skin and these can be stripped out by the natural environment. Sun, wind and so on. The polyunsaturated fats in Omega 3 fish oils can help return good health to our skin by adding good oils back into it and this has to be good for your skin. Combine this with good skin care and your skin will thank you for it.

4. An improvement in Arthritis

Arthritis is inflammation of the joints and so anything that helps reduce that inflammation helps arthritis. In the past Aspirin has been prescribed but it can have negative health side effects. Omega 3 oils have been shown to much better anti inflammatory properties than Aspirin, and they have positive health side effects, not negative ones.

5. An increase in the effectiveness of weight loss programs

Studies have shown that if we combine Omega 3 supplements with exercise in a weight loss program we will lose more weight than if we do the same exercise but without the fish oils. It's thought the reason is that the polyunsaturated fats increase the ability of enzymes to burn fat.

So are you convinced now that you should be taking more Omega 3 fats in your diet? I thought so, if what I've written here isn't enough to convince you then I don't know what it.

But remember, it's hard to get enough good fats from eating fish alone. You need to eat a lot of fish and the FDA tells us not to eat a lot of fish because of the risk of toxins from the flesh of the fish. And the same risk exists with some fish oil supplements. And fish is the biggest source of DHA and EPA that we know of.

The best way to satisfy the need for Omega 3 fish oils is to take Omega 3 supplements, but beware, some fish oil supplements are better than others. I won't go into which ones here, find out more on my website.

And I write more extensively on my website about the benefits of Omega 3 fish oils too.

So if you're convinced about the health benefits of Omega 3 fish oils in your diet make sure you're taking your fish oil supplements, daily.