Fish oil for weight loss (Omega-3)
Adherents of healthy eating, nutritionists and with one voice say: natural products are the key to the beauty and harmony of your figure. You do not need to use newfangled dietary supplements to achieve the desired result. Instead, trust the old proven remedy, fish oil.
Fish oil - a natural product contains a large amount of nutrients for the body and can be an excellent aid in the fight against extra pounds. The pharmaceutical industry has taken a step further - today fish oil is produced in the form of gelatin capsules, rather than liquid. Now taking it is not only useful, but also convenient.
Benefits of Omega 3 Essential Fatty Acids
The main value of fish oil is in its high content of essential fatty acids. They are irreplaceable because they are not synthesized or accumulated in our body - we can get them only from food. These include the long-chain Omega-6 acids (linoleic and arachidonic) and Omega-3 (alpha-linolenic (ALA), docosahexaenoic (DHA) and eicosapentaenoic (EPA)).
Omega-3s are of great value to the body, but they are found in food in smaller quantities than Omega-6, although the body needs it on a daily basis. A sufficient amount of Omega-3 in the diet helps to improve the metabolism of carbohydrates and fats, improves immune function and hormonal levels, has a beneficial effect on the state of cells, blood circulation, brain function (calorizer). It is even known that the use of Omega-3 serves not only to prevent atherosclerosis and heart disease, but also helps to cope with stress and depression.
Losing weight fish oil will allow you to lose weight more effectively, pregnant women will ensure the normal formation of the fetus, children - growth and development, and all physically active and not very mobile people will help to improve well-being and health markers.
Fish oil for weight loss is not at all a magic remedy that helps you to noticeably lose weight in a short time. It is used in combination with a diet, with physical activity, only in this case, due to the normalization of metabolism, fish oil helps to get rid of excess weight. For those who simply adhere to a healthy lifestyle and do not want to use fish oil for weight loss, you can use it to prevent diseases, to increase immunity, and for general health improvement of the whole body.
Sources of Omega-3
The main source of Omega-3 is marine fish of fatty varieties such as herring, mackerel, sardine, saury, salmon, salmon, trout, tuna. During heat treatment, the content of DHA and ALA in its composition decreases, which makes it necessary to use additives. Another problem of obtaining Omega-3 from farm fish is the deterioration of the conditions for its maintenance and the use of low-quality cheap raw materials in complementary foods.
Omega-3s are also found in the following foods: seafood, flaxseed oil and flaxseed, rapeseed oil, walnuts, chicken egg yolk. Unfortunately, the content of essential fatty acids in these foods is not as high as in fish fat.
Not only the amount of unsaturated fatty acids is important, but also the ratio of Omega-3 to Omega-6. It should be 1: 4 - 1: 3, but with a high amount of triglycerides in the blood, this ratio should be the opposite - 3: 1. In this, most plant and animal sources lose out to fish.
Which supplements are better - fish oil or fish oil?
In pharmacies you can find both fish and fish oils. These are two different products.
Fish oil is made from fish liver. Capsules can be purchased at the pharmacy, they produce both regular and fortified fish oil. As a rule, it contains unsaturated Omega-3 fatty acids and vitamins. However, all living things tend to accumulate in the liver not only vitamins, but also toxins. Unlike fish oil, fish oil is extracted from fish meat, not liver. It is less toxic and does not cause allergies, but it is more expensive.
Composition and benefits of fish / fish oil:
- Vitamin A, contained in fish oil, restores vision. It is especially useful for those who spend many hours in front of the monitor or are busy with any other work that is associated with eye strain.
- Vitamin D is an important "ally" for healthy teeth and strong bones. It is due to the high content of this vitamin that fish oil is recommended for children for the development of the skeletal system.
- Unsaturated fatty acids (fish oil contains mainly omega-3 acids). These substances have many beneficial effects: they prevent the formation of blood clots, cleanse the vascular system, with regular use, they reduce the level of "bad" cholesterol in the blood, and help the brain work. In addition, unsaturated omega-3 acids lower stress hormone levels. And this fact is another reason to use fish oil for weight loss, since most women "seize" stress with high-calorie sweets.
The difference is that fish oil is cheaper, but along with the beneficial ingredients, you risk getting toxins from the liver. This risk is absent when consuming fish oil. However, no one is safe from buying a low-quality supplement.
How to check the quality of the supplement?
Examine the range of the pharmacy and the labels on the packaging. This can be done locally or online. Carefully read the annotation to the drug, paying attention to what the fat was produced from (meat or liver) and the content of DHA and EPA (calorizator) in it. Calculate how many capsules you need to cover your needs. Cheaper drugs have a lower dosage, while expensive ones have a higher dosage. Calculate how much the purchase of the drug will be beneficial for you, and how convenient its administration will be.
Always check the contents of the capsule. Unfortunately, this can only be done after purchase. Cut open the capsule, notice the smell and taste. The taste should not be rancid. If the fat is bitter, then you can't take it - you can get poisoned.
Store the supplement in a dark and cool place, as heat and light will oxidize fats and become rancid and dangerous.
How do you take Omega-3s?
According to the American Heart Association:
The minimum intake of Omega-3 for healthy people (not fish oil, but fatty acids in its composition) is 300 mg / day;
- The minimum consumption rate for patients with coronary heart disease is 1 g / day;
- To improve health and lower blood cholesterol levels - 1-1.5 g / day.
According to Rospotrebnadzor RF:
The needs of adults for Omega-3 are 0.8-1.6 g / day.
- Children from 1 to 7 years old are recommended 1-1.5 g / day, and children from 7 to 14 years old - 3 g / day.
With an active lifestyle and weight loss, the need for essential fatty acids Omega-3 increases to 3-4 g / day
The maximum safe dose in the form of a supplement is 8 g. An increase to such limits for healthy people is not advisable and in some cases can only be recommended by a doctor.
If you eat 100 g of fatty fish 3-4 times a week, then you cover the minimum requirements for unsaturated omega-3 fatty acids. If fish is an infrequent guest on your table, consider taking a supplement.
But fish oil is not shown to everyone. There are contraindications:
urolithiasis disease:
- high calcium content;
- fish allergy;
- renal failure;
- tuberculosis;
- hyperfunction of the pancreas.
You should not eat fish oil on an empty stomach, this can lead to gastrointestinal disorders. Fats sharply activate the secretion of bile, weaken the stool.
If a dietary supplement is considered from the point of view of weight loss, it has many positive characteristics. Reviews describe it mainly as an additional drug to the main method of losing weight. Therefore, it is advisable to include it in the diet with a dietary diet. When dieting, fish oil helps the body deal with nutrient deficiencies.
Author: Zhanna Sh. (Specially for Calorizator.ru)
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