Take Omega 3 Supplements For Better Brain Health. Your Brain Will Thank You

Many people are aware of the health benefits of increasing your intake of the Omega 3 essential fatty acids DHA and EPA. But fewer people are aware of the strong links between Omega 3 and brain function, or in other words how to improve brain function and memory, combat ADD or ADHD or improve emotional disorders like depression.
Many scientists consider that the crucial link between early human beings like the Neanderthal, and modern human beings was the point at which we began to eat seafood.
Seafood, and particularly oily fish, contains the Omega 3 essential fatty acids DHA and EPA, DHA being the most important of these.
Your brain is about 60 percent fat, and DHA is the most important of those fats. An adequate supply of DHA is one of the most crucial factors in facilitating the transmission of brain signals. But if your brain doesn't have enough DHA it won't work as well.
When the early human beings began eating seafood their brains began to develop because of the increase in intake of DHA. Neanderthals, for example, primarily ate red meat, which supplied very little DHA. But when the early humans began eating seafood their brains began to develop, according to hypotheses, as a result of this intake of DHA from fish.
But if plenty of DHA is important for brain development surely a lack of DHA will inhibit brain function? And evidence showing that this is the case.
Scientific evidence showing that an ample supply of DHA to the brain improves cognitive ability, improves memory, improves mental development in children, helps improve learning difficulties such as ADD and ADHD and can also help improve outcomes with emotional problems such as depression.
In fact many medical professionals are now suggesting that one of the most important things a pregnant woman can do is to maintain an adequate supply of the Omega 3 essential fatty acids in her diet because of the strong links between Omega 3 and brain development in the infant.
(Not to mention the benefits for the mothers own health).
So whilst many people focus on the general health benefits of taking Omega 3 supplements, for example the reduction in your risk of dying from heart attack, the health benefits to your brain may be as significant or even more so.
And it doesn't just apply to the young. There is also increasing evidence that plenty of Omega 3 in the diet can help the brain function of the elderly by reducing the risk of Alzheimer's disease or dementia.
So next time you're wondering where you put the car keys, try and remember to write a simple notation on your next shopping list.
Buy Omega 3 supplements. And of course remember to take them every day. Your brain will thank you for it.
And to view two fascinating videos about the role of Omega 3 in brain development for children with learning difficulties visit my main website.

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.

Eat More Fish. Have Less Diabetes

Did you know that diabetes was reaching epidemic proportions? The number of people contracting type 2 diabetes is dramatically rising, and some experts are predicting that diabetes will become the most serious health issue of our generation. While some people take diabetes lightly there is no reason to.
As anyone who has serious type 2 diabetes will tell you it's no laughing matter. Diabetes can have serious implications for your overall lifestyle and your health.
Unfortunately, although the incidence of diabetes is rising dramatically the risk factors are well known. It is firmly understood that amongst other causes, common lifestyle choices have a big effect.
There's a range of risk factors for diabetes including genetic risk factors, and of course if you have a genetic background which makes you predisposed to contracting type 2 diabetes then there's very little that you can do about your genetics.
However there are other risk factors which are not genetic and which you have a lot of control over. Lifestyle factors which are dramatic indications of your likelihood of contracting diabetes include obesity, poor diet and lack of exercise.
Does that sound familiar? These are the same lifestyle factors that contribute to so many other lifestyle diseases. Along with smoking and excessive alcohol intake obesity, poor diet and lack of exercise are amongst the biggest killers in our Western society.
And they are major risk factors to contracting diabetes. Yet despite all of this the incidence of obesity in particular is rising fast in our society.
If you don't have diabetes there's a lot you can do to help reduce your risk of contracting it. Pay more attention to your diet, include more fruit and vegetables in your diet and reduce or eliminate foods high in salt, sugar and bad fats, and in particular processed foods.
Get more exercise. Exercise is one of the single most important things you can do to improve your health generally, and science is recognising the value of exercise to your health more and more every day.
Keep your weight under control or lose weight if you need to. The steps indicated in the previous paragraph will get you a long way towards that end. Atrocious diet and lack of exercise will inevitably lead to weight gain and in many people to obesity, and thereafter to diabetes.
If you have diabetes than your doctor has probably already told you to do all these things, namely exercise more and eat better and lose weight. These are the major controlling factors in any regime to help manage diabetes and people who pay attention to this advice can even reduce their symptoms of diabetes to zero.
And there's something else you can do. Studies are now beginning to show that increasing your intake of the Omega 3 essential fatty acids found in fish can help reduce your risk of type 2 diabetes. The essential fatty acids DHA and EPA, known as the Omega 3 fatty acids, are extremely important to good health overall and almost all of us are deficient in our intake of the Omega 3 fats. And you can remedy this by taking high quality Omega 3 supplements.
A new study just published last month in China, where 110,000 people were studied for up to 9 years, concluded that those with the highest intake of fish, in other words the highest intake of the Omega 3 fats, had the lowest prevalence of type 2 diabetes.
And reducing your risk of diabetes is only one of the health benefits that you should attract to yourself from increasing your intake of Omega 3 fatty acids. One of the other health benefits is reducing your risk of dying from heart attack and that has to be worthwhile just on its own.
This advice applies to everybody. All of us should be paying more attention to our health by paying more attention to our diet, exercising more and keeping our weight under control. And there are powerful reasons, including reducing your risk of type II diabetes, for increasing your intake of Omega 3.

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.

Are You Eating PCBs And Mercury With Your Omega 3 Capsules?

It's now becoming common knowledge that DHA and EPA, the 2 most important of the Omega 3 essential fatty acids, are extremely good for your health, and that most of us get too little in our diet. It is not so well-known that many Omega 3 fish oil supplements intended to deliver these important essential nutrients can be contaminated with PCBs, Mercury and other industrial contaminants.
Unfortunately it's true. The US government tells its citizens not to eat too much fish because of industrial contamination. Obviously fish oil comes from fish, and therefore there is a likelihood that if oil is used from contaminated fish then that oil will also be contaminated.
And sadly that's now been confirmed, with a significant number of Omega 3 fish oil supplements tested by an independent laboratory being found to be contaminated with industrial toxins which can include PCBs.
PCBs are a class of particularly pernicious industrial chemical that have been banned in the US since the 1970s, many of which are known to cause cancer. In California Proposition 65 requires manufacturers of various products to warn consumers if they are at risk of ingesting various toxic chemicals at certain levels from their products.
And it's not just some fringe brands of Omega 3 supplements that were found to be at fault. Some big names in the fish oil supplements industry have been caught in the net.
And as a result legal action has been launched against these companies for failing to warn consumers of the risks of using their products as required by Proposition 65.
There's no doubt that virtually all of us need to increase our intake of DHA and EPA, the essential fatty acids known as the Omega 3 fats found primarily in fish. But none of us need do so at any risk to our health from contamination from chemicals such as PCBs and more.
There's an easy way to tell if the fish oil supplements that you eat are clean. The manufacturer of these supplements should publish on their website a Certificate of Analysis of the oil used in the supplements, updated for each batch of oil used, by an independent laboratory, certifying that the oil has been tested to contamination and found to be clean, with the results there for everyone to see.
If you're currently taking Omega 3 fish oil supplements head to the website of the manufacturer and see if you can find such a Certificate of Analysis. If you can't consider a change of brands.
The best fish oil supplements are marketed transparently, and you are perfectly able to view the entire Certificate of Analysis for each batch of oil used in their manufacture. Unfortunately you'll find that this is quite rare.
So if you're convinced of the health benefits of Omega 3 supplementation choose your brand of capsules wisely. There are risks that you may not have thought of before.

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Is Age Related Memory Loss Inevitable, Or Can You Help Prevent It?

It's commonly assumed that aging and memory loss go together, that as you get older it's inevitable that your memory will get poorer. But loss of memory with aging isn't necessarily a given. Whilst you certainly can't prevent ageing it is incorrect to assume that a poor memory should go with it.
New studies are now delving deeper into the causes of memory loss with aging and coming up with strategies to help prevent or reduce it.
Recent studies are now showing that inflammation in the body and in the brain can be one of the causes of declining memory. In fact science is now beginning to understand that inflammation in the body is an underlying factor for a whole range of lifestyle diseases.
A new study discussed at the American Academy of Neurology's most recent meeting has established that the more elderly who are suffering from inflammation in the brain are more likely to exhibit symptoms of cognitive decline and memory loss than those who do not.
As a result there are new strategies which may well help you to improve your memory as you age, because aging and memory loss do not necessarily go together.
There are of course many strategies, including brain exercises, to help reduce age related memory loss, however today we specifically wanted to look at strategies to reduce inflammation and in turn, hopefully, to improve your memory.
One of the most powerful anti-inflammatories, or in other words substances that helps reduce inflammation, is what are known as the Omega 3 essential fatty acids. These are found primarily in fish oil, though it can also be found in smaller amounts in other foods. In the past our diets were high in fish, and therefore we all had a higher intake of the Omega 3 essential fatty acids.
But our intake of fish has declined and for this reason science is demonstrating that many of us are deficient in our intake of the essential fatty acids DHA and EPA, which help to fight inflammation in our bodies.
Helping reduce your risk of memory loss with age is just one of the many health benefits you will attract to yourself if you improve your intake of the Omega 3 essential fatty acids. One of the major benefits of more Omega 3 fats in the diet is reducing your risk of dying from heart attack.
But increasing your intake may also help prevent or reduce age-related memory loss.
Of course more study is being undertaken in these areas, but it is very clear from current research that all of us, for a wide range of health reasons, should seriously consider increasing our intake of the essential fatty acids found in fish. Sadly fish is very expensive and eating too much is not recommended because of Mercury contamination.
The good news is that it is entirely possible to buy high-quality fish oil supplements containing high levels of DHA and EPA, and that these are both cost-effective to take daily and quite clean. Sadly not all fish oil supplements are high quality.
So if you're worried about ageing and memory loss then you should seriously consider a daily dose of the Omega 3 supplements, both for your brain as well as for your general health.

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.