Fuel Your Brain with Omega 3 Fish is Food for a Smarter Brain Power Your Brain with Omega 3 Fish Oil

November 27, 2009 | By In General Articles |

Science is now proving that Grandma was right all along. Eating fish is good for you brain.

Almost daily, fish oil and its relationship with optimum brain development and functioning seems to be in the news. And everyone benefits - from the baby in the womb to Alzheimer’s victims.

Did you know that a baby’s brain is made up of nearly 70% omega 3 fatty acids - DHA and EPA? These fatty acids are needed for baby’s optimum brain development, including brain function and emotional health. That’s why the NIH (National Institutes of Health) recommends that all women who are pregnant or nursing supplement their diet with 1200 mg per day of fish oil with DHA and EPA.

But only 3% of expectant and nursing mother’s are getting the DHA and EPA their babies need. In fact, the average woman gets only about 18% of the NIH recommended amount.

The fetus needs the DHA and EPA fatty acids for optimum brain development. If it doesn’t get it from the mother’s diet, it’ll take it from the mother’s brain. This can cause many women to lose as much as 3% of their brain mass while they’re pregnant. Some experts believe this loss of brain mass is the reason why many women suffer from post-partum depression. This seems like a really good reason to be sure you’re taking omega 3 supplements during pregnancy.

Mom’s choice of foods not only affects her and her baby. It also affects older children in the family as well. For example, many researchers are finding a link between DHA and EPA deficiencies and ADD and ADHD behavior, social and learning problems.

But there’s hope. Working with children with ADD, ADHD and dyslexia problems, a team of British researchers helped these kids improve their spelling and reading skills. How did they do it? They just gave them omega 3 fish oil supplements with EPA and DHA.

Eating fish two or three times a week and/or taking a daily omega 3 fish supplement with DHA and EPA is good for adult brains too.

Higher incidence of migraines, depression and bipolar disorder have been found to be related to dietary deficiencies of omega 3 fish oil DHA and EPA fatty acids. While other studies show that eating fish and/or taking fish oil supplements can effectively treat and provide relief for these conditions.

Five million Americans now suffer from Alzheimer’s disease and the number will greatly increase as the baby boomer generation begins to age over the next twenty years. But fish oil can be a big help. Research shows that people who eat the most fish and have the highest DHA fatty acid levels reduce their risk of Alzheimer’s by 39% and dementia by 47%.

Fish oil also helps prevent “brain attack” or stroke. A Harvard Medical School study of over 43,000 men over a period of 12 years reported that men who eat fish just once a month had a 44% less risk of ischemic (blood clot) stroke than those men who ate fish less than once a month. Taking a daily aspirin, by the way, reduces stroke risk by only 21%.

Eating fish, by the way, is just as good for your heart as it is for your brain. Studies show that including fish in your diet on a regular basis (two or three times a week) can prevent heart palpitations (arrhythmia), lower cholesterol and blood pressure.

Fish can also reduce your risk of the number one killer - sudden cardiac death - by 45%. That is pretty amazing, don’t you agree? Fish is so good for your heart that the American Heart Association recommends you include it in your diet at least two times each week.

So, like I said, Grandma was right. Fish is brain food. It’s also good for your heart. So be good little boys and girls and listen to Grandma’s advice - take advantage of the omega 3 benefits.