Omega 3 Protects Us Part 5

The last disease I will talk about is one that millions of us have or suffer from, and that is arthritis. For those of you suffering from rheumatoid arthritis, there are some studies that show less morning stiffness, pain and swelling.

Because the omega 3s work as an anti-inflammatory, it is easy to understand why they would be helpful in arthritis. Any disease whose basis is inflammation will be subject to at least some improvement with the use of omega 3s as a supplement or in foods that you eat.

Omega 3 Protects Us Part 4

Are you one of the millions of people who have high blood pressure (hypertension)? If so, you should be on an omega 3 supplement. Omega 3 has shown a moderate improvement in blood pressure. This seems to be somewhat dose related in that the higher the dose of omega 3, the more the benefit to the blood pressure.

Omega 3 Protects Us Part 3

I will mention this, although if you have read this blog much you will know that I do not believe that cholesterol is our problem. The problem is inflammation.

But to be specific about cholesterol since it has been beaten into our heads, omega 3 has been studied a great deal in relation to cholesterol. While the omega 3s don't work specifically on cholesterol, they have shown a reduction in tryglycerides which is a fat related to cholesterol and heart disease.

Omega 3 Protects Us Part 2

The first disease I will talk about in relation to the omega 3s is heart disease. As you know, omega 3 is a power anti-inflammatory. So it is not surprising that studies have shown a significant decrease in the number of sudden death from heart disease in those individuals that take an omega 3 supplement. In fact, in one study of 11,000 people talking omega 3 supplements, there was a 45% decrease in the risk of sudden death from heart disease.

It is pretty well accepted today that if you are at risk for heart disease because of family history or for any other reason, you should be taking an omega 3 supplement. You can also get omega 3 from fish, but you need to eat wild fish not farm fish. Of course my favorite is salmon.

Omega 3 Protects Us

We hear a lot about how much fat we need to lose, but lets talk about the fat we need to live. The omega 3 fatty acids are essential for us to live well. Why omega 3 is so important is that the body cannot make it on it's own. We have to eat it. The food supply being what it is today, we get more omega 6 which we don't need - these are the bad fats when we get them excessively.

You may have seen the ads on TV for the new "prescription" omega 3 fatty acids. Don't buy into that one. If you get a good brand of omega 3 you can do it over the counter. This is the drug companies putting it in a bottle and expecting that you will pay more for it.

Over the next few days, I will talk about various diseases and the effect of omega 3.

Easing Arthritis Part 6

Lastly in this series on easing arthritis is to supplement if necessary. There are some supplements that arthritis sufferers find really helpful. Of course these are things that decrease inflammation. So first on your list should be a good omega 3 supplement. While this has many beneficial effects, the most powerful is the anti-inflammatory effect.

Some other foods that will be helpful are ginger. This is a food which has been used in India for centuries to alleviate arthritis pain.

Most people have heard of glucosamine and chondroitin. the active ingredient is glucosamine and has shown to be the most effective. However, I have some patient's who swear that if they do not take it with chondroitin it does not work as well. I won't argue with what works!

Easing Arthritis Part 4

Today I said I would talk a little about what foods to focus on if you have arthritis and especially if you are having pain. The number one food to focus on is those containing omega 3 fatty acids. These are foods like deep sea fish, brightly colored fruits and vegetables, olive oil, dark green leafy vegetables and flaxseed.

Read the labels on foods that you are buying that are already prepared. Do they contain any of the culprits I mentioned yesterday.

Our ancient ancestors had virtually no arthritis, but there diet was equally split between omega 3 and omega 6. Today we are way over the scale on the omega 6s and way under on the omega 3s.

10 Healthy Foods for Less #7

Canned tuna or salmon is a great source of protein and usually fairly inexpensive. In addition, these canned fish contain a good source of omega 3. One serving size is 3 ounces which is about half a can.

You can mix these with fresh greens and or tomatoes to make a healthy salad. They can also be used in casseroles as a protein source.

Inflammation and Food

To reduce inflammation, eat more of the omega 3 fatty acids. Foods rich in omega 3 are fish particularly deep sea fish, flaxseed, dark green leafy vegetables, olive oil, and brightly colored fruits.

Arthritis was not as big an issue in prehistoric times because they ate more plants and fruit and meat tended to be less of their food source. They did not have the processed sugars and saturated fats so they were eating far less of the omega 6 than we do.

Supplementing is good, particularly if you are not going to eat the good foods. If you can just cut down on the bad foods it will help, but if you're not going to eat the good foods, then supplement. Supplements that are helpful include glucosamine, ginger, and chondroiton sulfate. There is controversy about chondroiton as to whether it really has any active component to help. If you try and it helps, then use it, because it is doing something for you.

Eggs Good or Bad

I have said this before, eggs have gotten a bad rap because of all the hype about cholesterol. Once again, cholesterol is not the problem, but inflammation. That is another topic. Right now, I just want to talk about eggs.

There is no correlation between egg eating and heart attacks. They contain lots of nutrients which include protein and vitamins. In addition if they are from chickens that are nest free - free range, they are very high in omega 3 which is actually an anti-inflammatory. So in fact they could help in the prevention of heart disease.

Some Healthy Foods You May Not Like

Over the next few days, I'm going to be talking about some healthy foods that you may view as inedible or yucky! These foods deserve another try because of their nutrient value.

The first one I'm going to talk about is sardines. I know the first thing you might say is they are too fishy! Maybe, but consider this. Sardines are high in vitamin D, omega-3 fatty acids in addition to providing lots of protein, calcium and selenium. All of these things help protect your heart and your brain.

Because sardines are low on the food chain, they do not accumulate toxins such as mercury. They are also inexpensive and you don't have to wory about refrigeration until you open them.

Be sure to avoid sardines packed in vegetable oil. This kind of defeats their good qualities.

Shellfish

Yes, shellfish are good for you. Shellfish have gotten a bad rap because they are said to contain too much cholesterol. If you have been reading this blog for any length of time, you will know what I think of the cholesterol myth. While they do contain cholesterol, shellfish also contain lots of omega 3 fatty acids and are actually low in fat.

My husband was ecstatic when I told him he could really eat shrimp and not worry about the fat or the cholesterol. He wasn't so ecstatic when I told him, that was the sauces and butter that he had to watch a little more carefully. He's happy with the boiled shrimp and low cal cocktail sauce.

Other shellfish that are great for the same reasons are mussels, scallops and oysters.

Isn't Salmon A Healthy Food?

Everyone believes that salmon is a healthy food and it is. But once again, you need to read the label. What you want to look for is "wild" salmon. Most of the salmon in the grocery stores is farm salmon.

Because farm salmon are raised in pens, fed grains, plus a variety of other things including antibiotics, they are not the healthy food of wild salmon. They are more likely to cause cancer and have less of the good omega 3 in them. As with most of our food, you can consider farm raised salmon as processed food. Not the healthiest of choices.

Read the label and look for "wild" salmon.

More On Healthy Foods

I started talking a couple of days ago about healthy foods. Most of us have heard that canola oil is one of the better oils to be using these days. Well, once again you need to read the label. The canola oil which is good is that which is cold processed.

The most common process for getting canola oil out of the plant is to extract it with extremely high temperatures. What this does to the good omega 3 is make it rancid. To help correct this the manufacturers use some caustic refining to improve the taste and remove the smell. which creates some trans-fatty acids. So this type of canola is not all its cracked up to be.

Read the label and look for organic, cold processed.

Eggs - Good Food

Eggs contain many nutrients that can helps us be healthier. They are an excellent source of Vitamin B12 and also the antioxidant lutein. Lutein is very important in terms of our eye health.

The hype has always been that eggs are have too much cholesterol in them. Here is the facts from research. The effects of the cholesterol in 1 large egg eaten daily has shown to have no effect on the person developing heart disease.

The other things about eggs is to look at the free range eggs, which includes a diet of natural nutrients for the chickens, as well as meal which is enhance to provide more Omega 3. These can actually be very beneficial for the heart healthy or for someone who already has heart disease.

#3 of 7 Ways to Lessen Stress in Your Life

The third tip to decreasing stress in your life is to eat nutritiously. Eat lots of fruits and vegetables. Foods with omega 3 are great like fish. Fast foods and foods high in fat and calories are not helpful for many reasons, but they definitely do not decrease the effects of stress in your life. In fact, they put greater stress on your body internally, compounding the effects of stress on your well-being.

Olive Oil

Since I've been writing about fats, I thought I would give you a little extra information about olive oil and what all of the terms mean. You may remember I said to buy extra virgin olive oil. What you may not know is what extra virgin means. This is the highest grade of olive oil because it is produced without using high heat or chemicals. The color of the oil represents the age of the olives when they are picked. A more green grassier olive oil has a stronger flavor and is made from an earlier harvest - the olives are not as ripe. Later harvests yield a milder more yellow oil.

Virgin olive oil is produced the same way as extra virgin olive oil. The difference is in the amount of oleic acid present. Oleic acid is omega 9 fatty acid, which is a monounsaturated fat. The body can produce this if it has enough omega 3 and omega 6. When there is a deficiency of either omega 3 or omega 6, the body will produce omega 9 to try to compensate.

Ordinary olive oil is another form of virgin olive oil. The difference here is that is contains more oleic acid and impurities. It is a lesser quality oil and should only be used for frying or where you do not want the flavor.

Polyunsaturated versus Monounsaturated Fats

The polyunsaturated fats are those found in fish such as salmon, trout, sardines, mackerel and tuna. It's also found in flaxseed, walnuts, canola oil, dark leafy green vegetables such as Kale. The polyunsaturated fats include omega 3 and omega 6. Obviously we want to get more omega 3 than 6. The omega 3 really helps in cutting down inflammation which I believe is the real culprit rather than cholesterol.

Omega 6s are readily available in liquid vegetable oils, nuts, seeds, dairy products, eggs, and meat. Focus on getting some of the omega 6s, but mopre of the omega 3s. Get fish into your diet 2-3 times per week. Walnuts are a great snack as well as having many benefits. Put some flax seed meal into pancake batter, coffee cakes, cookies. Make your own salad dressing with olive oil and some fresh squeezed lemon.

Check labels and really be careful with processed foods as these contain mostly fats that are not good for you.

Other Anti-Inflammatories for the Brain

Yesterday I was talking about the anti-inflammatory effects of turmeric. The last brain food I want to mention is another anti-inflammatory food. I should actually say foods, because it is any of the omega 3 fatty acids.

Foods in this category are things like flax seed oil, olive oil, avocados, and fish such as salmon. I have written many things about the omega 3 foods, you can see these postings under omega 3.

Bottom line is that these are also anti-inflammatory foods and they help protect the brain from stroke.

More Brain Health Foods

To fight inflammation which is a key problem in the brain, a good source of omega 3 is essential. Nuts are one of the best sources. Specifically almonds, pecans, and walnuts. I have written about almonds and walnuts before, but nothing about pecans.

Pecans are high in antioxidants as well as containing omega 3 fatty acids. This makes them very beneficial in terms of decreasing free radical damage, but also to decrease inflammation in the brain and decrease plaque in the blood vessels in the brain, putting you at less risk for a stroke. Stroke like a heart attack is not from the high cholesterol, but rather from the high degree of inflammation in the brain which causes a chunk of plaque to break loose and become lodged in a blood vessel.