It seems that Omega 3 fats are good for all sorts of things. Fish oil and skin health go together too.

Lately we’ve talked about all sorts of serious health concerns that can be improved by increasing your intake of Omega 3 fish oil. Skin is no exception.

Whilst skin conditions and skin health aren’t a life threatening issue, there are probably as many people interested in keeping their skin looking good as their are about any other health issue. Skin care is big business and skin aging, and skin conditions like wrinkles, lines around the mouth and eyes and skin sagging serious concerns to so many, particularly women.

Enter fish oil. Skin is just like the rest of our body. It needs good polyunsaturated fats just like our heart does, and it responds to an increase in good fats and a decrease in bad fats in our diet by getting more and more healthy and looking better.

Most people who start taking fish oil supplements do so for reasons unconnected to skin health. However there is a tendency for many people who start taking fish oil supplements to report an improvement in specific skin conditions that they might have, as well as an improvement in the look and feel of their skin too.

And it’s not only skin. Whilst it’s clear that fish oil for good skin does indeed work, fish oil is also good for your nails and hair. Users of supplements routinely report improvements in nails and hair.

So why take fish oil for skin health? What does Omega 3 do for skin?

The skin has it’s own natural oils. It produces them itself, but can often suffer from a lack of oils. They can be stripped out by, for example, too much sun or wind or other factors. So people use moisturizers to retain skin moisture and reduce oil loss.

Omega 3 fats are similar to the skins natural oils and help the skin produce more.

Not only that but Omega 3 is also an excellent anti inflammatory. Many skin conditions are characterized by inflammation and so anything that helps reduce this is good for the skin. Fish oil has been shown to be an even more effective anti inflammatory than aspirin, and has no serious health side effects. Reducing skin inflammation is an excellent way to improve skin health and reduce specific skin problems.

Many skin experts are now prescribing a dose of fish oil for skin health each day. Of course that doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t also be using great skin care products, you should be doing both.

There’s excellent health reasons to be taking the very best Omega 3 supplements for general health and everyone should now be doing so. Whilst skin health is important the health and heart benefits of daily  Omega 3 supplements are vital, and reason enough to be adding a serious dose of fish oil to your daily diet.

But if your skin, and your nails and your hair are also going to benefit then there’s just more reasons to get healthier and feel better, and look better. Read the rest of this entry

Eating foods containing Omega 3 fatty acids increases your intake of Omega 3, but how much and at what cost?

Now that the role of Omega 3 fatty acids in improving your health is well known the food industry has jumped on board and started producing foods high in Omega 3 fatty acids. But should you be eating foods containing Omega 3 fatty acids?

Good question. Now of course there’s no doubt that Omega 3 fats, mainly found in fish oil, are good for your health. That’s now clearly established and we have talked about many of the health benefits of Omega 3 polyunsaturated fats right here. That’s what our website is about.

But with a rash of new Omega 3 foods coming onto the market we are being asked about eating foods with Omega 3 in them. Currently there are plenty of Omega 3 fortified foods available like eggs, bread, fruit straps, cereals,milk, cheese and pasta, and more.

There are basically 2 different forms of Omega fats, plant forms and fish, or marine, forms. Both are different and it is currently considered that the fish based Omega 3 fats (EPA and DHA) are the better for you, so for this reason food manufacturers are using fish oil fortification to produce their fortified foods.

Now of course there’s no problem getting more Omega 3 fats in your diet. They have a recognized health value and very few side effects. People who eat a lot of fish have been found to have much lower levels of various diseases like heart disease and this is linked to the amount of fish they eat.

However there is another issue. Whilst it does no harm at all to eat more good fats you need to consider how much you are getting and at what price.

Because foods with Omega 3 are much more highly priced than those without. That’s marketing for you. If people want those foods the manufacturers will charge more for them.

However when you look at the amount of Omega 3 in various foods you have to question whether the amount of good fats that you’re getting from your food justifies the extra cost. If the cost were the same then this isn’t an issue, but Omega 3 rich foods are more expensive.

Generally speaking the amount of Omega fats that you get in most of the foods is pretty low. If you take one serve of Omega-3 fortified bread you get around 120 mg of good fats. Of course there’s nothing wrong with more good fats, but how much are you paying for them?

Contrast that with a serving of oily fish and you get 3000 mg of Omega 3s. Dramatically more than from the bread.

Now of course fish isn’t cheap either. In fact probably the cheapest way to get your DHA and EPA is taking high quality fish oil supplements.

If you’d like to see an analysis of the different prices of DHA in different fish oil supplements read our page about how to compare fish oil supplements by price.

So there’s no problem eating foods containing Omega 3 fatty acids. You’re getting more DHA and EPA and that’s good. But it’s not stricly a cost effective way of doing it. You’re better to eat non fortified foods and buy fish oil supplements on a cost analysis. Read the rest of this entry

Can Omega 3 fish oil be useful for arthritis relief, and is this all you should be taking to combat arthritis?

Arthritis. Just the name conjurs up fear in the hearts of those of us growing older. Arthritis is a condition that affects mainly the older amongst us.

Lets have a look at Omega 3 fish oil for arthritis relief. Firstly lets start with a look at arthritis itself.

There are many forms of arthritis, over 100 actually . Each differs some from the others, but as a general rule it’s fair to say that arthritis is a form of inflammation of the joints. Part of a joint can become inflamed, or swollen, and this causes pain and limitation on free movement of the joint.

One of the principle causes of arthritis is nutritional problems, as well as stresses on the joints over time by, for example, repeated similar movement. Workers who have had a manual job requiring repeated movement  like lifting can also suffer arthritis that is caused in this way.

Nutritional deficiencies or excesses can cause arthritis in several ways. For example chances are you’ve heard of free radicals. These can damage many parts of your body including your joints and are a result of poor diet and other factors like pollution.

An improvement in the intake of natural foods and less processed foods, particularly fresh fruit and vegetables, can help increase the levels of anti oxidants in our diet and thereby combat arthritis and a host of other ailments that our modern lifestyle causes.

Arthritis pain is caused by inflammation in the joints. Inflammation is a scourge and some scientists believe that inflammation as we age is one of the prime, if not the prime cause of many of the age related diseases we suffer from over time. Inflammation can cause the formation of chemicals in our bodies and these can eat away at many of our body parts, including parts of our joints.

Today we want to look at arthritis and fish oil, or more specifically the role of fish oil in reducing the symptoms of arthritis.

If you’ve read our website you’ll know that there are a wide range of health conditions that are eased by increasing the intake of fish oils rich in Omega 3. Omega 3 fatty acids are polyunsaturated fats that are “good” fats for your body, unlike, for example, saturated fat which is a “bad” fat.

The polyunsaturated fats EPA and DHA, the 2 principal Omega 3 fats, have been shown over many years by much research to be extremely beneficial to our health in a whole range of ways. Now science is showing a link between Omega 3 and rheumatoid arthritis and other forms of arthritis.

And that increasing our intake of fish oils can reduce symptoms and pain from arthritis.

Why would you want to take Omega 3 for arthritis relief? Why does it work? Because, amongst other reasons, Omega 3 fats are extremely effective in combatting inflammation, including inflammation in the joints.

It is known that the use of Omega 3 for rheumatoid arthritis in particular, but also for other forms of arthritis, will significantly reduce pain once the user has been taking the fish oil supplements for a period of time. They do not work like painkillers, and it will take some period of use before the benefits are felt.

But the benefits of fish oil for arthritis sufferers are now clearly established.

Traditional arthritis treatments involve the use of anti inflammatory drugs like Celebrex, for example. But it is known that there can be significant risk of side effects from these types of drugs. Kidney failure for example. And Vioxx has been linked to around 140000 cases of coronary heart disease since 1999.

But the use of the best fish oil supplements has positive side effects rather than negative side effects. Taking fish oil supplements is a plus for your health generally for a range of reasons that you’ll see from reading some more of our site.

Is it sufficient to take fish oil supplements alone? Certainly taking high quality fish oil supplements can help relieve arthritis symptoms, but there is more that you can do.

The company that makes the best fish oil supplements is also one of the worlds major players in making health and nutritional supplements, and has now released a supplement specifically targeted at arthritis sufferers. It’s called Arthrit-Eze and it’s extremely effective in combating arthritis pain and other symptoms.

Taking a combination of the best Omega 3 fish oil capsules and Arthrit-Eze will produce the most beneficial result for those suffering from serious arthritis symptoms without the risk of serious health side effects such as are found by those taking Celebrex or Vioxx or similar. Read the rest of this entry