If you glance at the shelves of fish oil in the supermarket, your local health food store or online, there is a danger that you’ll become very confused. The type of fish oil, claims, pricing, and dose varies into eternity. There is an enormous selection. So what should you be choosing?
The Norwegian health authorities investigated some points of the market. Here they found – hold on – 136 different products. How many products we have in Denmark, I do not know, but there is no doubt that fish oil leaves consumers in a confusing jungle of products.
Although the amount of products is quite extensive, and opinions about fish oil are many, there is general agreement and evidence that supplementation with a quality fish oil – ie marine oils with their omega-3 fatty acids – is an interesting and important for our health.
I myself am very interested in fish oil and have consumed fish oil for several years. But I like many others also remained virtually every shelf through to find just the right quality oil that can help me with the flaws and challenges that have plagued me for many years.
Many research shows that today there is a strong correlation between lifestyle, diet and the incidence of lifestyle diseases that unfortunately we see more and more are suffering from.
The last 100-150 years have seen a big change in our nutrition and especially in the last 50 years have seen significant changes in the diet. This is particularly the intake and the ratio of intake of omega-6, omega-3 and antioxidants from plant sources.
Prior to 1900, the diet with simple and complex carbohydrates, fiber, vegetable, fruit (antioxidants) and fish. We also ate more porridge and herring. Today, ready meals, drinking, cafe food and processed foods made that we have an excessive intake of vegetable oils (omega-6 oils), meat, starch and sugar. Our diet has changed from being a balanced and anti-inflammatory diet to a more unbalanced and pro-inflammatory diet. This has led to great effect on our health, where we see a higher incidence of so-called lifestyle diseases; cardiovascular diseases, type 2 diabetes, Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, dementia and cancer, etc.
Omega-3 imbalancen
An average adult person consumes in her diet large amounts of omega-6 through vegetable oil and modern processed foods. We get almost no food with a high proportion of omega-3 (fatty acids EPA and DHA), such as oily fish, and we get a too small proportion of traditional food from the plant kingdom. The result is that the balance shifted. Therefore, it is important to look at her diet:
GET RID OF with all the processed food (with its large omega-6 content) as we do not know the content and appearance of.
START TAKING all vegetables and things with fiber, vitamins, minerals,and to that a high intake of fatty acids from fatty fish and/or other coming from the sea. All preferably supplemented with some fruit, but especially with a large contribution of especially the dark berries with their high content of polyphenols and antioxidants.
Photo: Caroline Attwood
Omega-3 and omega-6 – the two good fatty acids
We get so good fatty acids from two different omega-sources:
Omega-6
Omega-6 fatty acids from vegetable sources, ie vegetable oils. Omega-6 fatty acids are typically found in all greens and vegetable we eat. In addition, in various amounts in the plant oils, which are part of the daily diet as supplements; the largest sources comes from soy, grape seed, corn and sunflower oil; This often for addition to finished products in spreads, dressings, marinades, bread/pastries etc.
Omega-3
Animal-based oil. Omega-3 fatty acids obtained primarily from marine sources – eg. from fish, shellfish, fish oil and fish oil from crustaceans and algae. Omega-3 from algae has been on the market for some years and is now being produced in ever larger scale, grown in tank farms on land – a product which is extremely interesting and attractive. There is also a smaller, but not as effective opportunity to get omega-3 sources from the plant kingdom.
The essential balance of fatty acids
It has long established that we nutritional needs fats – but only the right ones. In short:
Saturated fats should be minimized
The saturated fats from terrestrial animals. Here indicates research that the amount of this intake should be minimized, since today we have an excessive intake.
Eat more fatty acids from plants and fish
The more favorable to health omega fatty acids from plants and from marine sources, especially from fatty fish – the so-called: Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids (PUFA).
Photo: Gregor Moser
Our body is able to produce most of what it needs to maintain our burning, biochemistry and vital life functions with the structure of protein complexes for use by the body’s building blocks, hormones, enzymes and energy metabolism.
However, we have two fatty acids that we rely on, and to be supplied to the body from the outside. We call them therefore “essential fatty acids”; we do have to eat us for them! These two are:
Linoleic acid omega-6 (LA)
Is the first in the so-called omega-6 chain and forms from other omega-6, with arachidonic acid (AA) as the most central omega-6 fatty acid, which is embedded in the body’s cells .
Alpha-linolenic omega-3 (ALA)
This chain omega-3 gives rise to the formation of the two very important omega-3 fatty acids: EPA (eicosa-pentaene-acid) and DHA (docosahexaenoic-hexaenoic acid). These two omega-3 fatty acids are embedded in the body’s cells in an optimal from nature and functional balance (AA) omega-6. These are the very core, and central to the understanding to maintain the balance of omega-6 and omega-3 fatty acids. (WHO recommends a balance of 2-5: 1 of omega-6/DHA-EPA)
Major benefits of omega-3 supplements?
To get back to the start, the Western/European diet generally lacks omega-3 to balance a high omega-6 content coming from our processed foods. Therefore, it is a great idea to supplement with a high quality omega-3 oils with a high content of DHA/EPA.
These are vital fatty acids that we can not produce in the body. We increase our omega-3 intake, so we will have a whole range of health really good benefits. In addition to generally attenuate inflammation processes in the body, we achieve very often following advantages:
- Get rid of pain in muscles and joints (arthritis and back pain)
- Improved health of the heart and vascular system – regulation of blood pressure
- Balanced cholesterol – particularly by controlling the oxidation of LDL type
- Less fatigue – more energy – away with headaches and migraines
- Better and deeper sleep – for the man less up at night (prostate)
- Greatly improved hair and skin – reduced skin dryness, itching, etc.
- Improved cognitive functions – focus/memory/learning (ADHD )
- Regulation of gastrointestinal function.
Most can probably recognize some of these challenges on their health. Over the years I have helped many people with the simple message about the importance of supplementing his diet with a large dose of fish oil daily. And we’ve achieved excellent results.
To sum it up, omega-3 fatty acids are included in a complex interplay with omega-6 and the balance between them is of great importance for our biochemical processes at the cellular level. This is particularly concerning. the emergence of the of our body, problematic and disease-causing inflammation
Follow next post – Part 2
Here I ask you the following: What options are there if you do NOT want omega-3 supplements from animal sources, meaning oil from fish? Understand the difference between the ordinary. fish oils and the new vegan alternatives: I take a look at the promising new alternative vegetable omega-3 sources.
Photo: Lesly Juarez
Getting Started with omega-3 fish oil from Zinzino
Would you like to start taking omega-3? Then look at this. Here you can see the fish oil, I successfully have used for several years and I am dealer. Zinzino-oil is from Iceland, added olive oil with its high content of powerful antioxidants. Note that you can acquire the fish oil or Vegan-oil with or without a blood test for fatty acid balance. To perform a simple test at home (more on Zinzino.com) Tests of 11 fatty acids in the blood – and thus in your cells. There are examined for levels, saturated fat, omega-6 and omega-3 and omega-ninth.
I’m always available – even for testing and analyzing tests.
