How Omega 3 Could Help Your Heart

The health benefits of Omega 3 are numerous, and it is most often praised for its effect on heart health. But can Omega 3 really protect your heart? Can it also improve your health if you already suffer from heart disease?

What is it?

 The most extensive studies on Omega 3 involve two Omega 3 fatty acids. These are eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA). High concentrations of EPA and DHA are found in oily fish

How Does It Benefit Your Heart?

Omega 3 helps your heart in several ways. It reduces your blood pressure and it also acts as an anti-inflammatory, and it decreases triglyceride levels. High triglyceride levels in the blood increase the risk of heart disease. Omega 3 also keeps the lining of the arteries smooth, to stop them from becoming thick and hard. The acid is an anticoagulant, which prevents blood clots.

Many studies have set out to prove the benefits on Omega 3 acids for your heart. Some of the most compelling evidence that Omega 3 acids prevent cardiac death was shown in a study by Leaf, A (2007).

The study found that:

• Omega 3 acids prevent the heart from arrhythmias (fatally erratic heart rhythms).
• Arrhythmias cause over half a million cardiac deaths per year
• Omega 3 decreases blood pressure and heart rate, improves blood flow and lowers triglycerides

What Are Triglycerides?

Triglycerides are the chemical form of fat. They can be found in food, the body and in blood plasma. The body converts undigested foods to triglycerides.

Triglycerides in plasma are derived from fats eaten in foods or made in the body from other energy sources like carbohydrates. Calories ingested in a meal and not used immediately by tissues are converted to triglycerides. These triglycerides are linked to coronary artery disease, high cholesterol levels and diabetes.

So Triglycerides are fat in the blood and Omega 3 reduces their levels, to protect the health of the heart.

Should You Try It?

Some recent examinations of only two of the numerous Omega 3 studies suggest that the incidence of heart disease may have been reduced because patients ate healthily and consumed oily fish regularly.

But these were not actual research results, just critiques of previous studies. There is a huge hole in these critiques. If the patients studied benefited because they led a healthy lifestyle and ate healthily, it does not seem logical that they would have had heart disease to begin with.

Omega 3 studies continue, and many health benefits are being found all the time, including those related to the heart. So if you suffer from heart disease, or you are keen to prevent it and you also want to the wide range of health benefits associated with Omega 3, it may be one of the best supplements you could take.

It is scientifically proven that Omega 3 supplements are not dangerous at all, and if you suffer from heart disease the recommended dosage is 1g per day. For most people, this is a huge quantity which is why it is usually best to take it in supplement form. If you are not certain, consult your health care provider to find out what is the optimum quantity of Omega 3 for you.