According to one study, just two fish meals a week can significantly reduce the
risk of heart attack. The reason: Fish oils, rich in unsaturated fats called
omega-3 fatty acids, change the chemistry of the blood to lower the likelihood of
heart disease. They also may help prevent or treat a wide range of other ailments,
including migraine headaches and rheumatoid arthritis. As William Lands, a chemist
at the University of Illinois in Chicago, observes: "From a scientific standpoint,
fish oils are as exciting as all get out."
Researchers began to suspect something fishy when studying Greenland Eskimos and
Japanese fishermen, who have a far lower incidence of heart disease and other
ailments common in Western countries, including diabetes, high blood pressure and many
cancers. What those two groups do differently from us is eat fish -- lots of it.
The Eskimos average more than three-quarters of a pound a day; the Japanese average
more than a quarter of a pound. By comparison, Americans eat only 13 pounds of
fish a year.
Dutch researchers provided more evidence for the link between fish and healthy hearts
in 1985, when they reported on a 20-year survey of the diets of 852 middle-aged men.
Those who ate an average of just one ounce of fish a day had half the rate of heart
disease of men who ate little or no fish. And the more fish the men ate, the less
likely they were to die of heart attacks.
Why do fish-eaters outlive meat-lovers? The answer seems to lie in the chemical
processes that set the stage for a heart attack. Over the years, sludge-like
plaque, made up of cholesterol and other blood fats, builds up on the inner walls
of the arteries. This process, called atherosclerosis, causes half of all deaths
in the U.S. As an artery narrows, a clot can cut off the blood supply to
part of the heart muscle, triggering a heart attack. Fish oils prevent this from
happening in several ways:
In another study of 20 adults with very high cholesterol and triglyceride levels,
Connor tested fish oils against polyunsaturated vegetable oil, a proven
cholesterol-cutter. Drop for drop, the fish oils were two to five times more
potent than the vegetable oil, pushing cholesterol and triglycerides down by
as much as 45 percent in some patients.
Fish may benefit your entire body. In a study of 37 adults with rheumatoid
arthritis, Dr. Joel Kremer of Albany Medical College found that those given
a fish-oil supplement had less morning stiffness and fewer tender joints.
When Robert Hitzemanin of the State University of New York at Stony Brook
gave fish oil to 15 migraine sufferers, eight improved significantly, reporting longer
intervals between attacks and fewer severe headaches.
Studies at the National Institutes of Health and at Massachusetts General Hospital
showed that a diet rich in omega-3 fatty acids protected mice against kidney
disease. These versatile compounds also slowed the development and progression
of mammary cancer in rodents studied at Rutgers University in New Jersey.
Fish oils may be essential for normal development of the brain and the retina.
When Dr. Connor fed pregnant rhesus monkeys and later their offspring a diet low
in omega-3 fatty acids, the baby monkeys had abnormal retinas and couldn't see
as well as other monkeys.
"Omega-3 fatty acids should definitely be part of the diet of pregnant and
nursing women." Connor says. "But we don't know how much is enough and how
much is too much."
The fish diet: What kinds? How much? All fish -- freshwater or saltwater,
fatty or lean, fresh or frozen -- provide some benefits. But those that swim
in cold ocean waters, such as salmon, mackerel, tuna and sardines, are higher
in the wonder-working omega-3 fatty acids. Even crab, shrimp, lobster and
other shellfish, long disdained as high in cholesterol, pack plenty of healthful
omega-3 fatty acids -- and less cholesterol per serving than a single egg.
Omega-3 Fish Oil contains two important unsaturated fatty acids EPA and DHA
extracted from salmon. Each capsule of 1,000mg contains 300mg of EPA and 200mg
of DHA, the highest level among similar products (most of them contain only
180/120mg of EPA/DHA). Made in Canada.
Packing: Each bottle contains 60 capsules.
Suggested Usage: As a health supplement, take 1 capsule per day after meals. For therapeutic purposes, take 1 capsule 2-3 times per day.
Price (shipping and tax are not included):
It's low in calories, high in protein and
packed with vitamins and minerals. But that's not why fish may be the ultimate health
food. A special group of compounds in fish oils have proved to be such powerful
protectors of the heart that doctors are urging Americans to swap their beloved
sirloins for salmon, sardines and other seafood.
In one study at the Oregon Health Sciences University in Portland, Dr. William
Connor, professor of medicine and head of the clinical nutrition department, fed
a pound of salmon a day to healthy volunteers and to patients with hyperlipidemia
(high levels of blood fats). Cholesterol levels in both groups plummeted, as did
levels of triglycerides and low-density lipoproteins. "The higher the
blood fats were to begin with, the greater the fall." Dr. Connor says.
#103 Omega-3 Fish Oil
USA: US$23.40
Canada: C$34.60
Hong Kong: HK$180.00