More good news on Omega 3

It’s no big secret that we’ve gotten steadily unhealthier in the years since omega-3 fatty acids began disappearing from our diets.

Call it another gift of what I have come to call the Torture Chamber Diet, which declared war on all fats – even the ones we need most for good health.

A new study shows that those wonderful omega-3 fatty acids – the ones we no longer get enough of – may play a role in fighting heart disease in diabetics.

Researchers in Iran found that diabetics who take an omega-3 supplement have lower blood levels of an amino acid linked to heart disease. They found that diabetics with the omega-3 supplements reduced their levels of homocysteine by 22 percent – versus just one percent in the placebo group.

The results of their study were published in April in the journal Nutrition, Metabolism and Cardiovascular Disease.

While this is great news for diabetics, the reality is that most of us can benefit from an omega-3 fatty acid supplement.

In fact, the lack of omega-3 fatty acids in our diet may be killing enough Americans to wipe out a small city each year. In a study published in April in Public Library of Science Medicine, Harvard University researchers looked at risk factors in preventable deaths. They found that between 72,000 and 96,000 Americans die each year as a result of an
omega-3 deficiency.

That’s about as many Americans who die each year from homicide, traffic accidents, drunk drivers and accidental poisonings combined.

Once upon a time, our meats and dairy products were loaded with natural omega-3 fatty acids. Modern farming techniques – and that indiscriminate war on all fat – changed that. Now, the most consistent sources of omega-3s are certain kinds of wild fish.

Because most of us don’t eat fish regularly enough, we’re not getting enough omega-3 fatty acids.

We’re starting to see more supermarket products fortified with omega-3s, but don’t be fooled by most of them. Some of these are highly processed foods that you shouldn’t be eating to begin with. Your best bet is a supplement, if you’re not already taking one.

There is solid evidence that omega-3 fatty acids can promote heart health and healthy cholesterol levels, lower your risk for certain kinds of cancers, fight pain and inflammation and improve brain functioning.

Those are benefits we could all use.