Sunday, October 2, 2011

Fish Oil

I think I am going to have to start taking Fish Oil. I am NOT a big believer in supplements - I think most of them fall short. I do still take my Juice Plus religiously - I believe in that one so much I used to sell it. Then came baby #2, and well I just did not have the time to dedicate to it.
When I was pregnant I did take a pre-natal vitamin, but other than my Juice Plus, I don't bother wasting my money. I know a lot of people spend a ton of money on vitamins and supplements, but not all of them are what they claim to be. For instance,  did you know that your body cannot absorb more than 500mg of calcium at once? And that for calcium to be properly absorbed it should be taken with vitamin D, magnesium, copper and zinc?
But I keep reading more and more about fish oil and its benefits:

According to
Carl Lavie, M.D., F.A.C.C., Medical Director of Cardiac

Rehailitation and Prevention, Ochsner Medical Center, New Orleans,

LA, and lead author of tone of the articles states, "This isn't just hype, we now

have tremendous and compelling evidence from very large studies,

some dating back 20 and 30 years, that demonstrate the protective

benefits of omega 3 fish oil, in multiple aspects of preventive

cardiology. The strongest evidence of a cardioprotective effect of

omega 3's appears in patients with established cardiovascular

disease and following a heart attack, with up to a 30 per cent

reduction in a CV related death."


Translated, that means that if you have heart disease, it is even

more important to take omega 3's than if you don't.


Dietary fish oil can also decrease the risk of atherosclerosis,

arrhythmias, heart attack, sudden cardiac death, and even heart

failure.


According to Dr. Lavie, EPA and DHA work by getting into the

membranes of cells and, in doing so, may help to improve the heart's

electrical activity, vascular tone, plaque stabilization and blood

pressure, among other benefits.


The human body doesn't produce its own essential fatty acids, so you

have to get them from food, or from taking a fish oil supplement

(that's why they're called "essential"). It isn't easy to get what

you need from food and it can also be very expensive, since you have

to be extremely particular about where the food comes from. One of

those sources, wild salmon, is $22 a pound and not readily

available.


NOTE: Some fish oils on the market are "food grade," and carry risks

that are unacceptable (like potential toxic heavy metal and

pesticide contamination). Some of them can make you burp and give you indigestion.
I have read more and more about a "pharmaceutical

grade" product, assayed by an independent third party for purity:


I think I might have to invest in it. :)

If any of you take a fish oil that you recommend, do let me know!

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