✓ Evidence Based

10 Health Benefits Of Taking Fish Oil

Fish oil is a type of fat that’s found in salmon, mackerel, and anchovies. It’s also available as a dietary supplement.

It’s used for a variety of reasons, including to help prevent heart disease and stroke. It may also be used for inflammatory diseases.

Fish Oil Benefits

Fish oil is a rich source of omega-3 fatty acids (1), which are important for brain health, mood, and heart health. The body can’t make these fatty acids, so they must be obtained from food. Omega-3 fatty acids are considered essential fats that the body cannot produce on its own. This is why they must be obtained through food or supplements.

They’re important for normal brain function and vision, as well as maintaining healthy heart and blood vessels. When you take fish oil daily, it can have different effects on your health.

1. Prevents heart disease

The main reason fish oil is so beneficial for your heart is that it contains omega-3 fatty acids. There are three types of omega-3 fatty acids: DHA, EPA, and ALA. Both DHA and EPA have been proven to reduce inflammation in arteries, which reduces the risk of atherosclerosis and heart disease.

Fish oil also helps prevent blood clots from forming in narrowed arteries, which can lead to heart attack and stroke. In addition, fish oil may protect against irregular heartbeat and arrhythmia by helping stabilize electrical impulses in the heart muscle cells.

People with high triglycerides (2) or fats in the blood can benefit from fish oil supplements. This is because these supplements can decrease triglyceride levels by as much as 50 percent after three months of treatment.

2. Boosts brain function

It turns out that the omega-3 fatty acids found in fish oil have been shown to boost brain function. They may even help protect against Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia (3).

Fish oil contains a high concentration of DHA and EPA, which are essential for healthy brain development and function. Studies have shown that people with low levels of these fats have an increased risk of cognitive decline as they age.

The researchers found that those who consumed higher amounts of DHA had better clarity than those who consumed less DHA or no DHA at all (4).

3. Great source of vitamins A and D

Fish oil contains vitamin A, but it’s not the same type of vitamin A found in plant foods like carrots and spinach. The type of vitamin A in fish oil is called retinol (5), which is important for healthy skin, vision, and immune system function.

Most people get enough vitamin A from their diets. However, people that don’t eat many fruits and vegetables may need to take fish oil supplements or eat more foods high in vitamin A to meet their daily needs.

Vitamin D on the other hand is naturally produced in the body when the skin is exposed to sunlight. However, if you do not spend time outdoors or if you wear sunscreen every day, it may be difficult to get enough vitamin D through the sun.

This can be especially true if you live in a northern climate where there are fewer hours of sunlight during the winter months. Fish oil supplements are often fortified with vitamin D to help ensure adequate levels of this important nutrient.

Vitamin D helps your body absorb calcium and phosphorus from food, so it can keep your bones strong and healthy. It also plays a role in cell growth and regulation of the immune system.

4. Helps slow the aging process

Fish oil contains collagen, which is a structural protein found in connective tissue. It’s made up of amino acids that are essential for proper skin, hair, and nail health. These proteins form a protective layer on the surface of the skin, which helps keep it supple and smooth.

Collagen is what gives your skin its elasticity, firmness, and bounce when you’re young. But as we age, collagen production slows down significantly and our skin begins to lose its elasticity. That’s why the skin wrinkles the older we get.

Scientists found that fish oil helps slow down certain aspects of the aging process. The researchers tested the effects of fish oil on the immune systems of mice, who were genetically engineered to age rapidly. They found that feeding the mice fish oil significantly slowed their aging process and delayed their death by 25 percent!

5. Helps with joint health

Fish oil helps with joint health because it improves the health of the connective tissue in the body. The connective tissue is what holds everything together, so it’s important to keep this tissue healthy.

Omega-3 fatty acids in fish oil help reduce inflammation throughout the body. If there is less inflammation in your joints, then you will experience less pain and discomfort when moving around. This is why fish oil has been proven effective for those who suffer from arthritis or other forms of joint pain.

6. Boosts immune system

Omega-3 fatty acids are critical for many biological processes in the body, including maintaining a healthy immune system.

A study published in the Journal of Clinical Immunology found that fish oil supplementation improved the function of T cells (6), which are a type of white blood cells in intensive care patients. The researchers concluded that fish oil may help fight against infections and promote recovery after surgery or injuries.

Another study found that people who took a combination of fish oil and flaxseed oil for six months had higher levels of DHA and EPA than participants who only took olive oil. This suggests that fish oils can improve immune function by increasing the amounts of omega-3s in your blood.

7. Decreases eye pressure

Fish oil is a popular supplement that has been used for centuries to treat a wide variety of conditions. One of which is to decrease eye pressure.

Fish oil decreases eye pressure by reducing the production of inflammatory mediators within the body. This lowers the risk of developing glaucoma and other eye-related diseases.

Glaucoma (7) occurs when there is an increase in intraocular pressure that damages the optic nerve and leads to progressive vision loss. Fish oil supplements are believed to decrease intraocular pressure by improving blood flow in the eyes.

Several studies have demonstrated that fish oil can help lower intraocular pressure in people with primary open-angle glaucoma and ocular hypertension. The evidence supporting this claim comes from clinical trials. Many of these trials show fish oil supplementation reduces intraocular pressure in both healthy individuals and those with glaucoma-induced increases in intraocular pressure.

8. Increases stamina

Fish oil has been shown to increase stamina and endurance, as well as decrease muscle damage. The essential fatty acids in fish oil are the building blocks of cell membranes, nerve tissue, and brain cells. A deficiency in omega-3 fatty acids may be responsible for the poor aerobic capacity seen in many athletes.

Fish oil supplements can improve your performance, especially when you’re exercising at a high intensity. This is because they can increase the body’s ability to burn fat instead of carbohydrates.

These days, most people take fish oil for its anti-inflammatory properties, but there’s growing evidence that it also helps the body use fat as fuel. During exercise, the fats from fish oil act as energy (8) so that your body doesn’t waste its glycogen stores.

9. Speeds up muscle recovery after exercise

Fish oil is an excellent source of polyunsaturated fats (9), which are extremely important to our health. Polyunsaturated fats help reduce inflammation and have been shown to promote healing in many different ways. They can also help prevent injuries from physical activities.

After the age of 40, muscle repair becomes more difficult. That’s why older people have trouble recovering from injuries. It’s also the reason it takes longer for them to build muscle mass.

Studies show that omega-3 fatty acids found in fish oil may reduce inflammation and hasten muscle regeneration after exercise.

In a recent study, volunteers took either a placebo or one gram of fish oil for 10 weeks before engaging in a resistance training program. The fish oil group experienced significant improvements in muscle strength, size, and endurance compared with those taking placebos.

10. Increases levels of serotonin

Serotonin (10) is a chemical that sends messages from one part of the brain to another. It’s also a hormone that helps control many body functions, including mood and appetite.

In the brain, serotonin is thought to play an important role in reducing depression, anxiety, and migraine headaches. It’s also involved in regulating sleep and appetite.

For some people, taking antidepressants such as Prozac or Paxil boosts their mood by increasing serotonin levels in their brains. But this doesn’t work for everyone. Some people who don’t respond well to these medications may find relief by taking fish oil supplements instead.

A study in rats showed that when they were given fish oil, their serotonin levels increased. Another study on humans found similar results. Taking omega-3 supplements for three weeks led to an increase in serotonin levels.

Conclusion

Fish oil, however, does not always agree with everyone. Some people experience side effects such as diarrhea or burping after taking fish oil supplements.

Luckily, there are ways of getting the same benefits from taking fish oil without experiencing any side effects. You just need to find the right supplement for you and take it correctly!

Fish oil is a great way to add Omega-3s to your diet, and taking it daily can be a huge help in preventing many diseases. If you decide to start taking fish oil, talk with your doctor first. After that, follow the label instructions and start taking the supplement of your choosing!