We are all generally taught that fats are bad for us and should be limited in our diet to ensure a healthy lifestyle. However, there are a group of good fats – Essential Fatty Acids (EFA’s) – that have a variety of health benefits. These include increasing your energy levels, boosting your immune system, to helping improve concentration and even helping to prevent and resolve a variety of diseases, including Alzheimer’s, heart disease, certain cancers, diabetes, arthritis, allergies and even depression.

What are Essential Fatty Acids & Why are they Important?

EFA’S need to be ingested by us humans as our bodies need them for general good health but we are unable to produce them naturally. The two EFA’s that are important to us are Omega-3 and the Omega-6.

Omega-3, is primarily found in cold-water fish and Omega 6 is found in grains, most plant-based oils, poultry and eggs. As we cannot produce these fats naturally, they need to be consumed in our diet and unfortunately most people do not consume enough through diet alone and therefore turn to supplements.

There are a variety of supplements that contain Omega-3 fatty acids but Omega 3 Fish Oil supplements generally contain the highest concentrations of EPA and DHA and is therefore the most popular choice for many.

What are the benefits of Omega-3 fish oil supplementation?

There is ever increasing wide range of benefits of Omega-3 fish oil. In addition to improved skin health, brain function and reduced inflammation, some of the main benefits include: -

• Improved heart health. Heart disease is one of the main causes of death globally and many studies have shown that people that have diet rich in Omega-3 Essential Fatty Acids have a lower risk of heart disease. EFA’s have been shown to play a part in reducing high cholesterol levels, reducing blood pressure, stabilizing an irregular heart beat and reducing the "stickiness" of blood cells called platelets, which can lead to such complications as blood clots and stroke.

• Improvement in rheumatoid arthritis, Raynaud's disease, psoriasis and other inflammatory and autoimmune diseases. EPA and DHA in Omega-3 are converted by the body into the natural anti-inflammatory substances called prostaglandins and leukotrienes - compounds which help to decrease inflammation and pain. Multiple studies have confirmed their powerful anti-inflammatory effects in conditions such as Arthritis and Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS).

• Improve depression and symptoms of other mental health problems. As your brain is almost 60% fat, it needs to receive the right quantity and quality of fats in order to function properly. Omega-3 is essential in keeping the brains cells communicating with one another and, when this fails to happen as it should, poor memory, lack of focus and low mood swings may result. Numerous studies have proven that taking Omega-3 Fish Oil can not only relieve depression and the blues, but prevent brain degeneration and possibly even reverse Alzheimer’s disease.

 As you can see, there are numerous benefits of using Omega-3 Fish oil supplements. They are not only essential to good health, but are arguably one of the most powerful and simplest ways of preventing and treating many of today’s chronic degenerative diseases.