Is Eating Foods Containing Omega 3 Fatty Acids A Good Idea?
Science is now firmly convinced of the health benefits of Omega 3 fatty acids, but should you be eating the new foods containing Omega 3 fatty acids that you are now seeing on the shelves of your supermarket?
There's basically 2 forms of Omega 3 polyunsaturated fats, plant forms and marine forms, found particularly in fish and fish oils. It is known that the marine form, being 2 polyunsaturated fats called DHA and EPA, is better fro your health than the plant form.
So as it's now known that these are good for you food manufacturers are starting to make foods containing Omega 3 fatty acids. But should you eat them?
The short answer is that there is nothing wrong with eating foods containing Omega 3 fatty acids. They are generally fortified with fish oil containing DHA and EPA and this is, as I said, good for you.
But that isn't the full answer to the question.
Demand for these foods has increased so food companies see an opportunity, and are charging a lot more for foods high in Omega 3.
So you also have to ask yourself how much good Omega 3 fats you're actually getting in these Omega 3 rich foods, and also how much it's costing you.
One serving of an omega 3 enriched bread, for example, gives you around 120mg of good fats. Nothing wrong with that, but it's not a lot compared to the 3000 mg you get from a serve of oily fish. And you're often paying a lot more for that bread.
Eating fish isn't cheap and you run the risk of getting a little dose of PCBs and mercury too.
If you're trying to increase your intake of good healthy fats you can do so most cost effectively by using fish oil supplements. The best supplements are totally clean, can be taken daily and work out comparatively cheap on a cost per unit of fish oils basis compared to high Omega 3 foods.
So although there are no known health risks to eating foods containing Omega 3 fatty acids they aren't a cost effective way to get more Omega 3 fats in your diet. But they do help a little.
Find out how to compare fish oil capsules on my website, because not all fish oil supplements are the same.
Want to know more about the Fish Oil Benefits? Or more about Omega 3 foods? Visit Peter's Website Healthy Omega 3 Fish Oil.