Showing posts with label omega 3 supplements. Show all posts
Showing posts with label omega 3 supplements. Show all posts

Wednesday, August 24, 2011

Eat More Sardines. There's Lots Of Reasons To Eat Them

Sardines are fish that are small. That's just small in size, not small in nutrition. In fact the health benefits of sardines are greater than their size.
Sardines are a small school fish which live in many of our oceans, and they are caught in their millions. Most people eat canned sardines, and in fact sardines were the first fish ever to be canned. However many people also eat sardines fresh.
Of course eating sardines is just wonderful for the taste. Sardines are extremely yummy, however sardines are nutritious too.
You've probably heard of the health benefits of Omega 3 fatty acids. The Omega 3 fatty acids are essential fats, meaning that they are essential to the proper functioning of your body. Sardines are extremely high in the Omega 3 fatty acids.
The health benefits of the Omega 3 fats are numerous, and include a reduction in your risk of dying from heart attack as well as many other cardiovascular benefits, and improvement to mental function, just to mention a few.
In fact sardines have more Omega 3, pound for pound, than just about any other fish in the ocean.
But the health benefits of sardines just start with the Omega 3 fatty acids. Sardines are also packed with a wide range of other nutrients.
Calcium for example, which is extremely important for your bones, good nerve function and more. Or how about potassium, or phosphorus. Sardines are high in protein too.
And then there's the vitamins. These include vitamins D and E as well as vitamin B-12, in which they are very high. Vitamin B-12 is very important to the proper functioning of your immune system and central nervous system.
Then there's your skin. Sardines are high in antioxidants, which benefit the health of your skin, and the Omega 3 essential fatty acids are also extremely good for your skin, particularly for maintaining skin moisture.
Overall the most important health benefit of eating sardines is for the Omega 3 fatty acids. Science is discovering that most of us are deficient in these important fats, and increasing your intake can do wonders for your health.
So eat lots of sardines, canned or fresh, for all those good nutrients in sardines.
But to get the maximum amount of benefit from increasing your intake of Omega 3 fats take high quality Omega 3 supplements every day. That is unless you're likely to be eating a can of sardines every day.
Note that not all Omega 3 supplements are high quality. Visit my website to find out which are.

Thursday, August 11, 2011

If You Take Omega 3 Supplements You Must Read This

Omega 3 supplements are big business, and it is now estimated that sales of various Omega 3 products run into the billions of dollars. And for extremely powerful reasons. Taking high quality fish oil supplements containing DHA and EPA may well be one of the best things that you can do for your health.
Many health conditions can benefit from increasing your intake of the Omega 3 essential fatty acids, from birth, or even before, right through into older age. That's why a whole range of Omega 3 products have now, over the last decade or so, become available.
And that's why the sales of products which have DHA and EPA, the major Omega 3 essential fatty acids, have exploded.
Many people, including me, have taken fish oil supplements for many years, and intend to do so for the rest of their life.
But they may not be able to.
Yes, there is a powerful reason why you, myself and everyone else may not be able to take Omega 3 fish oil supplements for the rest of our lives.
The reason is this. The pharmaceutical industry is an immensely powerful and profitable industry. It has been both powerful and profitable for many decades, and its tentacles reach right into government.
And the tentacles of the pharmaceutical industry also reach into the FDA.
The FDA, with the support of the pharmaceutical industry, now proposes a range of actions which, if they are allowed to take them, will make virtually all nutritional supplements, including Omega 3 supplements, illegal.
Yes that's right. Most nutritional supplements will no longer be marketed to anyone in the US if the FDA is allowed to get its way. You will no longer be able to buy your Omega 3 supplements.
Of course the pharmaceutical industry will be able to produce similar products, and in fact they already do. At about 10 times the price.
This is an outrage. This is an assault on the right of people to choose how they manage their health. It is an attempt by the pharmaceutical industry to drive their competitors out of business.
Whilst you may only be an individual, and you do not have the power of the pharmaceutical industry, if enough individuals protest their voice will be heard.
To find out more about this visit my website and add your voice to the growing protest.

Sunday, August 7, 2011

Fish Is Contaminated. So Should You Eat Fish?

It is becoming common knowledge that most of the fish in our oceans are contaminated to some degree with Mercury, PCBs and more. Given this, is fish good for you?
There are some important nutrients in fish, probably the most important is what I call the Omega 3 essential fatty acids. These are important fats which your body cannot produce itself, which must come from your diet, and which are essential to good health. The evidence is now showing that most of us are lacking in the Omega 3 fats.
But the nutrients in fish aren't just limited to the Omega 3 fats. Fish is extremely nutritious for a number of other reasons.
Protein is essential for good health. A large part of our body is made up of protein, it exists in every cell in our body. Protein is essential for the repair of damaged muscles, makes up a large percentage of our nails and hair as well as our bones and skin.
Fish is very high in protein, around 15 to 20 percent protein in fact.
It is also well-known that red meat is high in protein. However red meat comes with saturated fat, which clogs your arteries whereas the fat in fish is unsaturated.
There are more nutrients in fish than just protein and the Omega 3 fats. Micronutrients include iodine, phosphorus and calcium and there are also good supplies of vitamins A and D.
And in a world obsessed with losing weight it's good to know that fish has no carbohydrate. It's easy to digest too. On top of that it's yummy.
Reading all that you would think that fish was the perfect food. Apart from one tiny thing. According to various sources including our own government fish is contaminated with toxins like Mercury and PCBs. And we are warned, particularly if we are a pregnant woman, not to eat too much and to only eat certain types.
Yuk. Surely then we should all be avoiding fish. Given all this, is fish good for you or should it be avoided altogether?
There's no doubt contamination is a concern, however if you're prudent, choose the right fish and don't eat lots there is no reason why you shouldn't take advantage of all of the good nutrients found in fish. Our government tells us that two fish meals a week is healthy, and there is no reason to think this isn't true.
In fact research has shown over the last couple of decades that eating too little fish has exposed most of us to a wide range of lifestyle diseases such as heart disease. Not eating fish may be far more dangerous than eating it.
Don't eat fish every night. Be careful with the type you eat, some fish is more contaminated than others. And cook it the right way. You can find out more about all of these on my website.
But don't throw the baby out with the bathwater. Don't stop eating fish, it's good for you.
But do make sure that you take clean high quality Omega 3 capsules every single day. To find out more about these visit my website all about the health benefits of Omega 3 fish oil.

Thursday, July 21, 2011

Could A Postpartum Depression Strategy Include Omega 3 Supplementation?

Postpartum depression, and for that matter depression during pregnancy, is relatively common. It's difficult to get reliable statistics for postpartum depression as it is often not reported.
Estimates are however that anywhere up to 25% of women have suffered some form of major depressive symptoms during or after pregnancy.
Treatments for postpartum depression often include antidepressant drugs, and these can have nasty side-effects, possibly even on the fetus when taken during pregnancy.
Studies have suggested that a deficiency of DHA, one of the most important of the Omega 3 essential fatty acids, may well lead to the onset of major depressive disorders during pregnancy and after pregnancy.
Studies have also suggested that taking Omega 3 supplements during and after pregnancy may well have an ameliorating effect on postpartum depression.
There is also emerging and significant evidence that taking Omega 3 supplements, or increasing the Omega 3 intake in other ways, for example by eating Omega 3 rich fish, may well help reduce the symptoms of depression generally.
Could Omega 3 supplementation therefore become one of the important elements in treatments for postpartum depression?
A new study begun in June 2011 is to examine this very question, namely the role of Omega 3 essential fatty acids in depression during pregnancy and postpartum depression, or what is sometimes called postnatal depression.
This study is to examine the role of both DHA and EPA, the 2 most important of the essential fatty acids known as the Omega 3 fats, on depression during and after pregnancy. 126 women from Michigan, up to 20 weeks pregnant, shall take part in the study. Some shall take supplements high in DHA, some shall take supplements high in EPA, and some will take a placebo.
And all of these women shall be assessed for symptoms of depression 6 weeks after delivery.
If this study confirms the results of other studies, namely that treatment for postpartum depression should include Omega 3 supplementation, then this is good news. There are very little if any side-effects of Omega 3 supplementation, and if the Omega 3 fats help reduce symptoms of postpartum depression then it is very easy and safe to supplement effectively.
Not only that but there are other powerful health reasons, both for the mother and baby, to take Omega 3 supplements or to ensure an adequate intake of the Omega 3 essential fatty acids through pregnancy and thereafter, and right through life.
To find out more about studies about using Omega 3 as a treatment for postpartum depression visit my website.

Sunday, May 8, 2011

There's Omega 3 In Fish, Without Doubt, But What Else Is There?

Most people now know that there is plenty of Omega 3 fat in fish and that more of the Omega 3 essential fatty acids in your diet is extremely good for you.
The Omega 3 essential fatty acids are known as "essential" because they are extremely important for the proper function of your body, and also because your body is unable to produce them itself and therefore your diet is the only source of these fats.
And research has demonstrated clearly that over the last century our intake of fish, the primary source of the Omega 3 fats in our diet, has declined dramatically. And science is now showing that this decline has repercussions in a wide range of health areas.
Omega 3 levels in fish vary according to the type of fish. Some fish are relatively low in Omega 3 essential fatty acids whilst others are relatively high. Oily fish in particular have high levels of DHA and EPA, the 2 most important of the essential fatty acids, as these are found in the oil.
And so it would seem, if our diets are low in the Omega 3 fats, and there is plenty of Omega 3 in fish, that we should all be eating lots of fish. And whilst this is true to a degree it also has its own problems.
The American Heart Association tells us that we should all be eating a couple of meals of fish per week. However they also recognize a problem, namely that much fish is contaminated with Mercury, PCBs and other nasty toxins. Whilst these are present are in low levels they should not be there at all, and we should not be eating them.
And for this reason the AHA also repeats various warnings made by the FDA, particularly concerning children and pregnant women, warning that they should not eat too much of certain fish, and that they should vary the types eaten because of this particular problem.
And with the price of fish rising all the time providing 2 fish meals per week can become prohibitive for many families.
There is no doubt about the Omega 3 levels in fish, however there are also reasons why we should be extremely careful in choosing which ones we eat, and we should also look for other alternatives to improve our intake of the essential fatty acids.
There are many brands of fish oil supplements available, however there are also brands of supplements which have been found to be contaminated as well, and so you should be extremely careful if looking to get your essential fatty acids from capsules.
But there are excellent Omega 3 supplements available with high levels of DHA and EPA and no contamination.
There is plenty of Omega 3 in fish, but some powerful reasons not to eat too much. Fortunately, through the use of high quality fish oil supplements, it is both cost-effective and safe to increase your intake of DHA and EPA every day.

Sunday, April 10, 2011

The European Parliament Confirms the Role of DHA in the Development of Baby Vision

It is now pretty well known that there are substantial health benefits, including to the very young, from increasing the amount of the Omega 3 essential fatty acids in our diet. This has now, in the last couple of days, been confirmed by a decision of the European Parliament.
The Omega 3 essential fatty acids are important fats that our body needs to good health but which it is unable to produce itself. For this reason all of our Omega 3 fatty acids must of necessity come from what we eat. And unfortunately the primary source of these essential fats is seafood, and particularly oily fish, and our consumption of seafood has declined dramatically over the last century.
This has had substantial health ramifications, and in particular has contributed to an increase in a range of lifestyle diseases that were rare a century ago. Researchers started to uncover the reasons why when they began to study communities which had very low levels of the lifestyle diseases such as the Japanese, and discovered a link between the amount of seafood consumed and diseases such as heart disease.
Whilst the initial evidence was building up there was some scepticism about the health benefits of the Omega 3 fats, however it is now generally recognised by mainstream medical organisations that a deficiency in the Omega 3 essential fatty acids contributes to heart disease and may even contribute to a heart attack causing death. The American Heart Association now tells us to eat more fatty acids for this reason.
But it's not just for our heart health. There's a wide range of other health problems which are impacted by a deficiency in our intake of the essential fatty acids, including our eyesight, and the development of baby vision
It is not commonly known but there is more DHA in the retinal rods in the eye than in any other cells in our body. An adequate supply of DHA ensures better vision in the very young and in the very old, because it is also now understood that low levels of DHA can be a contributing factor to macular degeneration, the leading cause of blindness in older people.
During the first 3 years of life your baby's vision develops dramatically. In the first 3 years of life the size of a baby's eyes increases threefold from birth. Retinal tissue in the eye is mature by the age of 3, although the development of vision continues throughout childhood affecting such things as hand eye coordination.
The development of baby vision affects every aspect of an infant's life.
It has been recognized for some time that breastfed infants have better developed visual functions than those who are fed formula. Traditional infant formulas does not contain any of the Omega 3 fats, particularly DHA, whereas breastmilk does, provided the mother has these important fats in her diet. If she does they are passed to the infant through breastfeeding.
For this reason it is now possible to buy DHA fortified infant formula, and the European Parliament has now confirmed the benefits to the eyesight of babies and infants of this DHA fortification.
Through a narrow vote it was confirmed that infant formulas can include claims about the benefits of DHA in the formula on infant visual development. There were voices of objection raised of course on the grounds that this may lead mothers to think that formula is as good for babies as breastmilk.
This is a valid objection and it is generally accepted that breastmilk is always better for babies than formula, however for various reasons mothers will still continue to use formula for their babies, and if they do it is always better that they use formula fortified with the Omega 3 fats.
There's no doubt breastmilk is better for babies, however it is important that any mother also understands that for her baby to get an adequate supply of the Omega 3 essential fatty acids the mother must have an adequate supply of these fats in her own diet. This is important both for her own health as well as for the health, and visual development, of her baby.
Gradually we are seeing acceptance by the mainstream, including medical organisations such as the American Heart Association, and now by the European Parliament, of the fact that a sufficient intake of DHA and EPA is essential to the good health of all of us, as well as to the development of baby vision.
Of course eating fish is the traditional way of ensuring an adequate intake, however fish is now generally considered to be contaminated with toxins such as Mercury, and we shouldn't eat too much fish that this reason. Fortunately there are high quality fish oil supplements available which are both cost-effective to take daily and which are completely clean and free of contamination.

Monday, April 4, 2011

Find Out About The Link, If Any, Between Omega 3 Fatty Acids And Lowering Blood Pressure

There is little doubt about the heart health benefits of the Omega 3 essential fatty acids DHA (docosahexaenoic acid) and EPA (eicosapentaenoic acid). Many of the benefits to our heart health of increasing our intake of these 2 of the most important essential fatty acids are now mainstream, and for this reason mainstream organisations such as the American Heart Association are telling us we should all be eating more Omega 3 fats.
But do these health benefits extended to lowering your blood pressure?
In fact it's not just heart health benefits that are attracted to us by eating more of the Omega 3 essential fatty acids. There's a wide range of health benefits, some of which are now firmly established and some of which are still in the process of being investigated.
Unfortunately over the last century our intake of seafood has dropped dramatically. Instead of having a fish on our plate we are more likely now to have fries or burgers for dinner. And this is having an impact on our health.
Fish is the biggest source of DHA and EPA, the 2 most important essential fatty acids known as the Omega 3 fats. Our body is unable to manufacture either of these fatty acids itself and so needs to rely on our intake of these fats through our diet.
When we were eating a lot more fish we were getting plenty of the Omega 3 fats in our diet because fish, and in particular oily fish, are very high in these fats. Unfortunately burgers and fries are not high in the Omega 3 fats and are high in unhealthy fats.
The resultant effect has been that our intake of the good Omega 3 fats has declined dramatically over the last century and at the same time our intake of bad Omega 6 fats has increased just as dramatically, and it is considered by medical professionals that this may well be a substantial factor in the increase in the incidence of a wide range of lifestyle diseases including heart diseases, cancers and much more.
There is now some suggestion that those who are prone to high blood pressure may also benefit from increasing their intake of the Omega 3 essential fatty acids by lowering their blood pressure. In a study referred by the American Heart Association a large group of men were split into smaller groups and given a range of different dietary intakes, some higher in fat and some lower in fat, some with Omega 3 supplementation by way of fish oil capsules, some eating more fish and some taking placebo capsules.
The object was to examine the link, if any, between Omega 3 and lower blood pressure.
The result was interesting and encouraging, and the conclusion drawn was that in subjects who took either the fish or the fish oil, particularly those in the low-fat groups, diastolic and systolic blood pressures dropped.
It is always difficult to say at what point something is sufficiently proven. Of course these questions will continue to be studied, and as seems to be the case with all these things some studies will confirm this conclusion and some will reject it.
However whether it is sufficiently proven that taking fish oil capsules reduces your blood pressure, there is now no doubt that all that all of us should be taking fish oil capsules every day, or eating more fish, to attract a wide range of well recognised health benefits to ourselves, including reducing the risk of dying from heart attack.
The evidence supporting the conclusion that our reduction in intake of the Omega 3 fatty acids is severely affecting our health is mounting. And the evidence that increasing our intake now will attract significant health benefits to us is also mounting.
There are excellent high quality Omega 3 fish oil supplements available on the market which are both cost-effective to take every day, and, provided you buy quality supplements, are free of the Mercury contamination commonly found in fish.

Sunday, April 3, 2011

Omega 3 Fortified Eggs Are Very Expensive. But Are They Worth the Extra Cost to You?

Just about every food you buy now seems to be fortified with Omega 3 essential fatty acids. Eggs are no exception, and it is now quite common to see Omega 3 fortified eggs in your supermarket, and they are usually quite a bit more expensive. Is the extra cost of Omega 3 eggs worth it?
First of all let me say that all eggs should have Omega 3 essential fatty acids already. The fact that our mofern eggs are devoid of the Omega 3 essential fats owes as much to modern farming practices as it does to anything else.
The Omega 3 fatty acids commonly found in a range of natural foods such as fish start life out in grass. In the ocean the Omega 3 fats are found in seagrass. When small fish eat the seagrass they ingest the fats, and when in turn these small fish are eaten by bigger fish the essential fatty acids work their way up the food chain.
That's why fish oil is such a good source of the Omega 3 fats, because of the seagrass.
And ordinary grass is no exception, it too has plenty of Omega 3 fats.
And in the past our chickens used to free range around the farm, and spend their day eating, amongst other things, plenty of grass.
Yes surprising though it may seem chickens love to eat grass. Just watch one for a while and you'll see it breaking off grass stems and eating them.
So of course if the chickens were getting grass in their diet they were getting Omega 3 fats in their diet and these were therefore found in their eggs.
But modern farming practices have ensured that chickens no longer eat grass, rather they eat such foods as chicken pellets, grains and soy products. These don't have Omega 3 fats, and therefore neither do our chickens or their eggs, and therefore if we want Omega 3 fats in our eggs we need to buy Omega 3 fortified eggs.
The problem is that there are a number of essential fatty acids known as the Omega 3 fats, not just one. DHA and EPA are the 2 most important, and these are the fatty acids found in fish.
However there is another form of fatty acid known as ALA, which is not nearly as healthy for our body. It is really a precursor to DHA and EPA because it is only worthwhile for our health once our body has converted it into DHA and EPA.
And sadly it is now recognized that our body is very inefficient at converting ALA, and in fact very little of it is converted at all.
Meaning that eating Omega 3 fortified eggs with ALA in them rather than DHA and EPA gives you little health benefit.
If you're interested in finding out more read the label on the eggs, we have seen eggs with DHA and EPA, but this is rare. Generally ALA is found in the eggs because it is cheaper.
So in my view you're wasting your money spending more for Omega 3 eggs.
You're much better off spending your money on high quality fish oil supplements which have stacks more DHA and EPA in them and which are convenient and cost-effective to take daily.
Of course the perfect solution is to keep your own chickens, allow them to free range around your garden and provide you with beautiful Omega 3 fortified eggs.

Wednesday, March 9, 2011

Are You Getting Much Omega 3 In Fish That You've Fried? And If Not What Should You Do?

So you're eating fish tonight. Is there much Omega 3 in fish that might be served up to you tonight? Surely there is because everyone now knows that fish is the best source of those all-important Omega 3 essential fatty acids.
Not necessarily. The amount of Omega 3 in fish varies greatly depending on the type of fish and a number of other factors, including, if it's salmon that you're having, whether it's wild or farmed.
But a new factor that seems to affect the amount of Omega 3 in fish that we are eating has also been uncovered in a recent study. It would seem that how you cook your fish affects how much of those all-important essential fatty acids you'll be eating tonight.
A recent study undertaken and published in Neurology journal seems to be showing that how you cook your fish determines whether or not you're getting the maximum benefit from those Omega 3 fats.
The study was undertaken on residents of what is sometimes called the "stroke belt", a string of southern States which includes Mississippi, Alabama, North and South Carolina, Arkansas, Louisiana, Georgia and more. In these States the rate of death from stroke and the rate of stroke in general is much higher than the rest of the country, and in particular much higher amongst African-Americans.
And the study established that people living in these States ate much higher than levels of fried fish than in other states.
In other words there was a correlation between the amount of fried fish consumed by those residents and their rate of stroke. And in particular it was found that African-Americans in those states have extremely high rates of consumption of fried fish.
Now of course this doesn't establish that all these people are getting strokes from eating fried fish, it would require much more study to firmly establish this. However it is certainly worrying and offers a powerful suggestion to those amongst us who understand the health benefits of more Omega 3 fatty acids in the diet that they should be baking or steaming their fish rather than frying it.
Of course there are problems with getting your Omega3 fats by eating fish, regardless of how you cook it. Fish is becoming extremely expensive and we are now warned by our government not to eat too much due to contamination with Mercury and other toxic contaminants.
And for this reason, in my view, the most cost-effective way to get a regular daily intake of the Omega3 fats is through the use of high quality Omega 3 supplements.
However there is no doubt that fish is good to eat, provided you don't eat too much. But if you're eating your fish confident in in the knowledge that you're getting all those good fats in your diet you may be fooling yourself, there may not be so much Omega 3 in fish that youv'e fried.

Monday, September 20, 2010

Can You Use Omega 3 Fatty Acids To Combat Pancreatic Cancer?

Pancreatic cancer is a severe cancer. It is estimated that almost 37,000 people will die from pancreatic cancer every year. Will using fish oil dietary supplements that contain daily fish oil supplements help prevent pancreatic cancer?
While cancers like prostate cancer and breast cancer are commonly in the news pancreatic cancer just isn't. But it is the 4th greatest killer in the US when it comes to cancers. Sadly the prognosis for people who experience cancer of the pancreas isn't great, and just like all cancers it is much better to prevent pancreatic cancer than it is to try to cure it.
There is a growing body of data that many cancers could well be positively benefited from a rise in the consumption of the mega 3 essential fatty acids DHA (Docosahexaenoic Acid) and EPA (Eicosapentaenoic Acid). These are known as important fatty acids because they are essential for good health, however they cannot be made in the body and must be taken in through the diet.
And during the last hundred years our consumption of Omega3 high foods has dropped considerably. The two most important of the fatty acids are EPA and DHA, and these are found mainly in seafood and in particular in oily fish, and our intakes of fish and seafood in general have dropped considerably. Other sources of the omega3 fatty acids have included grass fed beef and free range eggs, however our beef has become mainly grain fed, which decreases the Omega 3 content, and the same pertains to our eggs.
A new study done on inhabitants of the San Francisco Bay Area finds that improving the intake of omega 3 fatty acids, in conjunction with an increase in intake of vitamin E and vitamin C may lessen the risks of pancreatic cancer by up to 30 %.
Plus the study noted also that a high intake of saturated fat may in fact increase the risk of pancreatic cancer by anywhere up to 60 percent.
Obviously it is always difficult to say when this is sufficiently proved, and clearly more studies are needed, however this also lines up with other research suggesting that increasing the consumption of omega 3 fats could help prevent other cancers, in particular breast cancers and bowel cancer.
Even so the health benefits of taking high quality Omega 3 supplements are much more than just the chance of preventing pancreatic cancer. Lots of the health benefits of an increased intake of essential fatty acids are now accepted by mainstream medicine, and mainstream organizations such as the American Heart Association are suggesting that we should ımprove our intake of the essential fatty acids to avoid such health conditions as heart disease.
So whether you are worried about pancreatic cancer or you're not there's numerous benefits to be gained from increasing your intake of essential fatty acids. You do that if you take high quality fishoil dietary supplements containing Omega 3 daily.

Thursday, July 2, 2009

You're Looking For The Best Omega 3 Supplements. But how Do You Choose?

You start researching Omega 3 supplements and you start finding out all about DHA and EPA and lots more. You're confused. How do you choose the best Omega 3 capsules?

You know what it's like. The more you read the worse it gets. You start learning about EPA and DHA, and long chain and short chain omega 3 fats. About ALA and converting ALA to DHA.

For example a reader recently asked me about how to choose his omega 3 fish oil capsules. He was confused about the difference between long chain and short chain Omega 3 fats, and confused about which were the best Omega 3 supplements.

I can understand his confusion. Here's a short explanation, and then well have a look at how to choose the best Omega 3 fish oil supplements.

The three Omega 3 fats we've mentioned (DHA, EPA and ALA) are polyunsaturated fats. They are all good for your body but by far the best and most important is DHA. Remember DHA is the fat that makes up a large part of your brain, though of course that isnt the only reason.

ALA is primarily found in plant foods like flax, whilst EPA and DHA are found in sea foods like fish. ALA is the less important Omega3 nutrient. And ALA is a short chain fat. No need to go into complete detail on what a short chain fat is as its really complicated.

But DHA, the most important Omega 3 fatty acid along with EPA, is what you need from your Omega 3 supplements. And all Omega 3 fish oil capsules contain DHA.

Every fish oils capsule has DHA regardless of the brand.

So it seems that fish oil supplements are better than flax seed Omega 3 supplements, but how do you choose between the different fish oil supplements?

Theres 2 things you need to look for to find the best rated Omega 3 fish oil capsules. You need to look for the quantity of DHA in the capsules, and the purity of the oil.

You can't decide which are the best value fish oil tablets without knowing how much DHA you get from them.

Supplements with a third of the amount of DHA than other supplements are not good value even if they are half the price, because on a price/DHA quantity comparison they are actually more expensive.

And thats not all, you need to consider the purity of the oils too, because, sad to say, many of our fish are contaminated with toxins. You wouldn't want to take Omega 3 capsules with traces of mercury and PCBs would you?

That's the 2 things you need to consider when choosing your Omega3 capsules.

It isn't easy to do that comparison though. I have spent some time doing it and the good news is that there is a brand of Omega3 capsules that do offer good value on DHA quantity as well as the highest purity in the industry.

But actually doing that comparison isn't as easy as you'd think and you may struggle. I have run the sums and one brand comes up as the best fish oil supplement on both DHA quantity and also on oil purity. The very best Omega 3 supplements are made by the small New Zealand company Xtend Life.

That's not really a surprise as they also make some of the worlds best nutritional supplements generally.So you may not find it easy to do the comparison yourself. But it's all done for you. Here is where you find the worlds best Omega 3 capsules.



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