The Omega-3 Connection: The Groundbreaking Antidepression Diet and Brain Program

A must-read for anyone dealing with depression, The Omega-3 Connection by Andrew L. Stoll, M.D., strikes yet another blow against the standard American diet.

We already know that years of noshing on highly processed foods have saddled us with sky-high rates of heart disease, obesity, and related conditions.

But, as we’re starting to understand now, our eating habits may also be subtly altering our brain chemistry, leaving us vulnerable to anxiety disorders and depression.

Only in this case, it’s not just what we’re eating–it’s what we’re not eating: foods containing omega-3 essential fatty acids–the “good fats” that help maintain optimal brain function.

In his book, Stoll, the director of the psychopharmacology research lab at Boston’s McLean Hospital and assistant professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School, suggests that restoring our body’s natural balance of omega-3s may help alleviate (and prevent) many types of depression — even for those who don’t respond to traditional antidepressants.

Omega-3s may also prove helpful with other problems, such as the inability to handle stress, memory loss, and cognitive decline. The book contains a “renewal plan” designed to help readers put Stoll’s concepts into practice, recipes for omega-3-rich dishes, advice for choosing supplements, and dosages for therapeutic use.

Although Stoll is quick with the caveat that much of the research on omega-3s and brain function is still evolving, he makes a compelling case for using these fats to regulate depression and other cognitive disorders.

Along with major epidemiological evidence that shows lower rates of depression in those cultures that consume a great deal of omega-3s, Stoll’s own studies indicate that boosting their intake can reduce depression symptoms.

And Stoll cites stacks of additional studies suggesting that omega-3s can also help with major depression, schizophrenia, and postpartum depression. Going even further, Stoll makes a strong argument that omega-3 deficiency could be contributing to rising rates of teen violence and attention deficit disorders.

Of course, depression should never be treated without physician supervision. But in laying the groundwork for the omega-3s to emerge as the next big thing in natural depression therapy, Stoll certainly gives us food for thought.

The Omega-3 Connection: The Groundbreaking Antidepression Diet and Brain Program

The Ultimate Omega-3 DietLive longer, better, and healthier with omega-3s!

The Ultimate Omega-3 Diet is the first book to offer simple, practical steps for striking the proper balance between miraculous omega-3 fats and the less-healthy omega-6 fats to get the most out of your diet.

Armed with the practical information in The Ultimate Omega-3 Diet, you’ll be able to:

• Discover delicious omega-3-rich foods that are right in your supermarket
• Cook mouthwatering meals using the 40 included recipes and meal plans
• Navigate the often-confusing supplements aisle
• Read food labels to identify hidden omega-6 fats found in many foods
• Pack in omega-3s even when eating out
• Learn the omega-3 and omega-6 content of more than 900 foods

Buy The Ultimate Omega-3 Diet
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The Omega Diet: The Lifesaving Nutritional Program Based on the Diet of the Island of Crete

Is it really possible that eating more fat is the key to better health? It depends on the fat, according to Dr. Artemis Simopoulos.

The Omega Plan shows, in great detail, the difference between omega-3 fats, those found in fish and some green vegetables, and omega-6 fats, which are found in most meats and vegetable oils.

The former have heart-protective and cancer-preventive properties; the latter, she writes, cause obesity, heart disease, cancer, depression, and a host of other ills.

Omega-3 fats are at the heart of her plan, along with ample servings of fruits and vegetables. Unlike diets based on deprivation, Simopoulos offers some fairly lush food choices, including an ounce of cheese every day.

Best of all, The Omega Plan is bursting with so much useful information about food shopping and preparation that you’ll be able to use its advice the second you put the book down.

Buy The Omega Diet: The Lifesaving Nutritional Program Based on the Diet of the Island of Crete

Omega 3 fats might help in lowering high blood pressure (BP), according to a new study published in Hypertension.

Oily fish, such as salmon, mackerel and sardines, contain two types of omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) - DHA and EPA, that have been shown to reduce blood fats called triglycerides and possibly prevent dangerous heart-rhythm disturbances.

Due to this, it is recommended that adults eat these fish twice a week, and that people with heart disease consider taking fish oil pills to get extra DHA and EPA.

The effects of omega-3 fats on blood pressure are less clear. And it has not been known whether omega-3-rich foods, specifically, are helpful; this includes plant sources, which contain an omega-3 known as ALA, a precursor to DHA and EPA.

The International Study of Macro- and Micro-nutrients and Blood Pressure (INTERMAP) is an international epidemiologic study of 4680 men and women from 17 population-based samples in China, Japan, United Kingdom, and United States.

They found that people who ate more foods rich in omega-3 fatty acids tend to have lower blood pressure. This relationship was seen with fish, as well as with vegetable sources, such as canola oil, soybean oil, flaxseeds and walnuts.

Among the study participants, those who ate relatively more omega-3 fats from food tended to have lower blood pressure. The results lend modest support to the general recommendation that adults increase their omega-3 intake.

The benefit was most clear among people without high blood pressure and those who were not taking medication or following a special diet to control their high BP.

The findings suggest that people eat their omega-3 fats as part of an overall diet, which helps control blood pressure. That includes limiting salt, alcohol and saturated fat, while getting enough vegetable protein and nutrients such as potassium and calcium. Hence, dietary sources of PUFA may contribute to prevention and control of high BP.

Source

The FSA has today issued new advice on eating oily fish and, for the first time, is able to recommend maximum levels at which the health benefits of preventing heart disease clearly outweigh the possible risks from dioxins.

Men and boys, and women past child bearing age or who cannot or are not intending to have children, can eat up to four portions of oily fish a week before the possible risks might start to outweigh the known health benefits.

Girls and women who may become pregnant at some point in their lives can eat between one and two portions of oily fish a week to get the known health benefits whilst limiting any possible effects on any children that they may have in the future.

Pregnant and breast feeding women can also eat between one and two portions of oily fish a week, and should do so not just for the health benefits to them but because oily fish also helps the neurological development of their babies. (The Agency already advises pregnant women, and women intending to become pregnant to avoid shark, marlin and swordfish and not to eat large amounts of tuna.)

Occasionally eating more than the amounts of oily fish advised by the Agency will not be harmful. Possible risks from chemicals such as dioxins are not immediate: they develop as the chemicals accumulate in the body over a long period of time.

Source: FSA Issues New Advice On Oily Fish Consumption

Fish oil is the most widely used source of omega-3 fatty acids, but it is by no means the only source. A growing number of people know that flax oil as a potential source, but most are unaware of the wide variety of other omega-3 sources already available on the nutritional supplement market.

Shark liver oil, for example, has been described as “an excellent source of alkylglycerols, squalamine and omega-3 PUFAs providing a multitude of health benefits”.

Lyprinol, a nutritional oil derived from stabilised green lipped mussel powder, has none of the side effects typically associated with fish oil supplementation, but is much more expensive.

Another omega-3-rich source is emu oil - an excellent source not only of omega-3 but also of omega-6 and omega-9 fatty acids. Emu oil is marketed as a source of good fat helping to balance excess quantities of saturated fats in most diets and consequently control cholesterol.

Seal oil is also rich in omega-3 fatty acids including docosapentaenoic acid (DPA), docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA).

Source: Omega alternatives to fish oil need more promotion

A diet rich in omega-3 fatty acids, dietary fibre, beta-carotene and vitamin E appear to offer significant protection against non-Hodgkin lymphoma, says a Swedish-Danish-American study.

The researchers behind the new study, led by Ellen Chang from the Northern California Cancer Center, looked at the dietary intakes of 591 people with non-Hodgkin lymphomas (NHL) and certain lymphoma subtypes, and 460 healthy controls recruited from seven Swedish counties.

After adjusting the results to eliminate potential confounding factors like gender and BMI, Chang and her colleagues report that, while dietary intake of most macronutrients was not associated with NHL risk, average consumption of about 0.8 grams per day (0.4 grams per 1,000 kcal) of omega-3 or marine fatty acids was associated with a 20 and 60 per cent reduced risk of NHL and its subtypes, compared to those who consumed about 0.2 grams per day.

This also extended to fish oil supplements, with people who supplemented their diet with fish oil at a significantly reduced risk of NHL and its subtypes than people who did not take the supplements (risk reduction of between 30 and 50 per cent).

Fish oil has been found to greatly reduce the symptoms of lupus disease, offering hope to millions of sufferers with little alternative to steroid treatment. At present there is no cure for lupus. Steroids are used to reduce side effects but cannot be administered long-term. Now researchers from the University of Ulster in Belfast report that a key way of managing lupus may be through diet.

Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE) or lupus is a disorder of the immune system, where the body harms its own healthy cells and tissues. The body tissues become damaged causing painful or swollen joints, unexplained fever, skin rashes, kidney problems, complications to the cardiovascular system and extreme fatigue.

Fish oils contain long-chained polyunsaturated fatty acids which are essential for normal growth and development but also have anti-inflammatory and anti-autoimmune properties, noted researchers Dr Emeir Duffy, from the School of Biomedical Sciences, and Dr Gary Meenagh, from Musgrave Park Hospital, Belfast.

Dr Duffy said: “We have been investigating how fish oil can improve the quality of life for lupus sufferers. In lupus, the body’s immune system does not work as it should. Antibodies, which help fight viruses, bacteria and other foreign substances, are not produced effectively. The immune system actually produces antibodies against the body’s own healthy cells and tissues. These auto-antibodies contribute to inflammation and other symptoms of the disease.”

Participants in a recent study who were taking fish oil supplements three times daily for 24 weeks, saw a reduction in disease activity, an improvement in quality of life and reported an overall feeling of improved health by the end of the study compared to those taking a placebo, reported Dr Duffy.

Participants taking the fish oil also showed a reduction in fatigue severity, the most debilitating symptom for lupus sufferers, she added. “From our study and from other work, there is evidence that increasing dietary intake of the polyunsaturated fats found in fatty fish can have beneficial effects for lupus sufferers,” concluded Dr Duffy.

Good examples of fatty fish include mackerel, lake trout, herring, sardines, tuna and salmon. There are approximately 500 diagnosed cases of SLE in Northern Ireland and it is most common in women of child-bearing age.

Previous research has suggested that a developing foetus uses up large quantities of the mother’s omega-3 and makes women more susceptible to degenerative diseases including lupus.

Source: http://www.nutraingredients.com/news/news.asp?id=6602

There’s now more evidence that consuming supplements of the omega 3 fatty acid DHA - naturally found in breast milk - could allow new moms to contribute to the development of their baby’s brain and visual system.

A study found that children whose mothers received a 200mg dose of docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) for the first four months of breastfeeding performed better on a test of sustained attention than those whose mothers received a placebo, suggesting supplementation of DHA during breastfeeding elevates these levels.

DHA is an essential fatty acid naturally present in breast milk, and a key building block of the developing infant’s brain and visual system. The human body cannot produce sufficient amounts of DHA for the needs of the eye and brain consequently it must be consumed through foods, such as cold water fatty fish, or in supplemental form.

Source: DHA from mother boosts infant development

British researchers have created a vegetable with high levels of healthy fatty acids, normally found only in fish and poultry products.

They engineered a relative of the cabbage plant to produce substantial quantities of two very long chain polyunsaturated fatty acids, arachidonic acid (ARA) and eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), in the plant.

EPA has been found to reduce the risk of heart disease, relieve the symptoms of inflammatory conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis, fight depression and may also protect against Alzheimer’s.

ARA is important for mental health and is a precursor to a group of hormone-like substances called eicosanoids, which impact immunity, blood clotting and other vital functions in the body.

With fish stocks declining, and concerns over high levels of toxins, such as polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and dioxins, biotech crops could provide a safer and more sustainable source of omega fatty acids.

Source: Modified vegetable could be new fatty acid source