Inflammation occurs as our body’s natural protective response to fend off
any outside aggressors and to begin the process of healing. Its effect on
our tissues usually involves pain, heat and redness. However, there are
some cases that this outward effect is not visible.
Inflammation is a double-edges sword; its effect can be helpful or harmful
depending on the circumstances. When an inflammation is in chronic state,
devastating consequences are likely to happen like arthritis, heart disease
or stroke. It usually happens when the cause of inflammation is continually
reintroduced or if the acute inflammatory response is not able to eliminate
it. This situation is very likely to happen nowadays because of our
exposure to implausible amounts of toxins.
Some of these toxins can be avoided like poor food choices, smoking, and
prolonged sun exposure. While some things arise from things from things we
don’t have control like genetics, accidents and pollution. Inasmuch as
there are factors you can’t help being exposed to unnecessary and harmful
factors detrimental to your good health, you can also take food supplements
effective in strengthening your body against the sometimes lethal effect of
inflammation. The most effective food supplement according to recent
studies happens to be fish oil.
The prevalence of destructive or chronic inflammation among Western
countries makes it imperative for many specialists to deal with preventive
measures. The reason behind this is that the Western population is more
exposed to stress, obesity and poor health in general. Many pharmacological
anti-inflammatory drugs offer reduction of inflammation, however, long-term
medication have potentially lethal side effects.
So what is your safest option if you have inflammation? Research on
alternative medicines revealed that certain dietary supplements can help
reduce levels of pro-inflammatory factors, with significantly lower side
effects. One of these dietary supplements is the essential fatty acids or
EFAs.
Essential fatty acids are necessary for various aspects of normal
physiology like: mediating immune response, regulating bodily secretions
and their viscosity, dilating and constricting blood vessels, regulating
collateral circulation, directing endocrine hormones to their target cells,
regulating smooth muscles and autonomic reflexes, being primary
constituents of cell membranes, regulating the rate of cell division,
maintaining the fluidity and rigidity of cellular membranes, regulating the
flow of substances into and out from cells, transporting oxygen from red
blood cells to the tissues, maintaining proper kidney function and fluid
balance, keeping saturated fats mobile in the bloodstream, preventing blood
clots, mediating the release of inflammatory eicosanoids that may trigger
allergic conditions, and regulating nerve transmission and communication.
(Source: Fish Oil: The Natural Anti-inflammatory by Joseph C. Maroon and
Jeffrey Bost, 2006, page 39).
For this reason, it is very important for over-all health to have a regular
intake of foods rich in omega-6 or omega-3 EFAs. The omega-3 pathway,
activated by trauma, injury, or chemical stimulus, is the process of
converting the omega-3 EFAs found in the cell membranes to various
eicosanoids. If the omega-3 EFA components of the cell membranes become
dominant, an anti-inflammatory state can result, with preventive health
benefits.
Fish oil is the best source of the omega-3 essential fatty acids. But why
fish oil, you might ask? The needed nutrients can also be found in green
plants; algae (phytoplankton); leaves and seeds of the perilla plants; and
linseed oil but fish oil is considered the most important dietary source of
omega-3 EFAs because it contains concentrated amounts of the ALA
derivatives with APA and DHA.
The two mentioned nutrients can almost exclusively found in seafood. Fish
contains high amount of EPA and DHA because they are at the top of food
chain based on algae, a single-marine organism that manufactures huge
amount of EPA and DHA.
