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Fish Oil: Should You Take it?

fish oil

I’m sure you’ve heard of fish oil before… It’s one of the most highly known supplements on the market.

But, is it worth your money to take it?

I’m not going to get scientific with this, because I know you won’t want to read it.

So, my short answer… Yes, fish oil can be very beneficial for you.

Fish Oil is beneficial because it contains Omega 3 fatty acids.

Omega 3’s are very anti-inflammatory and do a whole bunch of great things for our cells, metabolism, and brain function.

Here’s the thing.

It’s not just important how many omega 3’s you get. The ratio you ingest between omega 3s and omega 6’s is arguably even more important.

Omega 6’s have similar function but are pro-inflammatory.

It is estimated today, the average American eats a 20:1 (omega 6’s being the 20). Before processed foods – this ratio was closer to 2:1.

This means that because of our current diets, our bodies are way more inflammatory than they need to be.

This leads to: Slower recovery times after workouts, decreased skin health, lower immunity, and more joint pain. Excess inflammation is also thought to be a catalyst (speeds up) to disease.

Omega 6’s are typically found in most vegetable oils like safflower oil, corn oil, cottonseed oil, and sunflower oil.

You want to try and eliminate these from your diet as much as possible, while adding in more omega 3 fatty acid rich foods like:

Herring, sardines, salmon, mackerel, swordfish, mussels, tilapia, halibut, flounder, pollack, flax seeds, walnuts, hemp seeds, pecans, and hazelnuts.

And you can also take fish oil 🙂

Just by switching up your day to day ratio of omega 3’s and omega 6’s, the drop in inflammation in your body can lead to:

Faster recover after workouts
Less Joint Pain
Boosted Immunity
Improved Skin Health
Reduced Risk for Cancer
Help with Depression
Reduced Blood Pressure (For people with high blood pressure)
Can Lower Triglycerides 15-30%

It’s recommended by the American Heart Association to take about 1g / day of fish oil. It is important to note that, even though Fish Oil will provide you with your Omega 3’s, it’s important to get them from whole foods as well.

Sometimes fish oil can have a fishy taste to it, but if you take it with meals, you can avoid that pretty easily. Just PLEASE do not do this – because I did it once.

Don’t put your fish oil in your shakes. It is disgusting.

The recommended daily dose of fish oil is 1000mg to 1200 mg a day, but it’s not the fish oil that matters, it’s the omega 3’s within them.

Generally, the more omega 6’s you eat, you’ll want more omega 3’s.

You won’t notice a different overnight from this, but in a few weeks, it’ll start to add up.

I recommend Stronger, Healthier, Faster’s liquid fish oil. It contains over 3x what a regular fish oil capsule would provide you with in Omegas 3’s, and there is also Vitamin D as well, which is much needed if you live in the Northern States (like Maine).

Here is the link: https://www.amazon.com/SFH-Stronger-Faster-Healthier-Omega-3/dp/B00RBV3YKO/ref=sr_1_1_a_it?ie=UTF8&qid=1473648232&sr=8-1&keywords=stronger%2Bhealthier%2Bfaster%2Bfish%2Boil

Of course, this is a more expensive choice, but that’s because it is much more dense in the omega 3s. You could get the regular fish oil pills from the store, but you’d have to throw down quite a bit of them to get the same amount of omega 3s (3200mg contained in 1tbsp).

I hope this helps!

Hunter Grindle

Looking for a Workout Program you Can Stick to? Give us a Call at Hybrid Fitness and we’ll Help You Get Started! Call us at 207-542-0599!

 

Sources

http://examine.com/supplements/Fish+Oil/
http://www.precisionnutrition.com/all-about-fish-oil
http://www.precisionnutrition.com/all-about-healthy-fats
https://authoritynutrition.com/optimize-omega-6-omega-3-ratio/