Donna's Healthy Living Tips

By now you have probably heard that the oil in fish, especially deep water fish, like Salmon, is very good for you.  There is, however, a very unhealthy side to fish consumption which is the contamination levels of heavy metals and other toxins that are in the fish.  We humans have only ourselves to blame as all the other creatures of the world are innocent in the heavy-duty pollution that has taken place in the last couple centuries.

Back to Omega 3’s…it seems a little counter-intuitive that oils are actually good for so many parts of our bodies.  Here are a few:

• Joints-Omega 3’s have an anti-inflammatory effect which makes them a wonderful and healthy addition for anyone dealing with arthritis or other joint issues.  I give them to my dog and cat every day to help them stay healthy and moving well.
• Heart/Cardiovascular-including but not limited to: high blood pressure, high cholesterol, high triglycerides, irregular heart beat, blood clots, atherosclerosis, etc.  Omega 3’s have been clinically-proven to reduce the occurrence of coronary heart disease and atherosclerosis, lower blood pressure and cholesterol, and more. 
• Brain/Mental Health-including but not limited to: dementia, anxiety and depression, mood swings, learning and behavioral disorders, etc.  DHA, one of the elements of OmegaGuard is essential to brain health.
• Diabetes 
• Digestive-i.e. IBS, Crohns, Colitis, etc.  The anti-inflammatory effect is likely what is so helpful here with these conditions.
• Skin/Hair-A friend of mine has found that increasing the Omega 3’s in her diet helps her complexion to stay more clear.  Our cat and dog have healthier skin and fur when they are consistently taking their Omega 3’s (the dog gets the capsule just dropped in her food, the cat’s capsule gets opened up and dribbled over his food which he adores licking up).
• Pre-natal-Studies have shown that woman who supplement with DHA (one of the Omega 3’s) have smarter babies with better brain development.  Wow!

So now that we have established why Omega 3’s are so good for us, let’s look at considerations in how to get Omega 3’s into our diet.  The single biggest consideration is what I mentioned at the beginning, contamination of the best sources of Omega 3’s: fish. 

Shaklee Corporation has been manufacturing their Omega-3 Complex for decades, long before the media recognized the benefits of Omega 3’s.  The fish oil is distilled THREE TIMES and then tested for heavy metals and other contamination.  If any trace contamination is found that batch is not used.  The standard is incredibly strict and is equated to looking for a grain of sand in an Olympic-size swimming pool. 

I, for one, don’t much care for the flavor of fish.  As a vegetarian it was simple for me to also toss fish out with the rest of the meat because I don’t like it.  After reading up on all the good things that Omega 3’s do for me I decided to take the Omega 3 supplement because I feel the HUGE benefits outweigh my vegetarian considerations.  Plus, I don’t have to taste the fish! 

One little tip, I take the Omega 3’s (the red capsules in Vitalizer) just before bed because sometimes during the day there can be a little burping of fish flavor and I never notice it when I take them at bedtime.  I think I am probably losing a little absorption because they aren’t being taken with a meal, but I am willing to do that because I don’t want to chance tasting fish.

Know that not all companies (I would hazard to say very few) take such pains to make sure their Omega 3 supplements are that pure.  So think twice before you grab the cheapest Omega 3 supplement on the drugstore shelf.  You can do a lot of damage to your body with those heavy metals and other toxins.  Plus, once we ingest heavy metals, they don’t leave our bodies naturally.

Donna Copeland is an Independent Shaklee Distributor who has been enjoying her own healthy skin and coat as a result of taking Omega 3’s regularly.  You can find more information at: http://www.shaklee.net/DonnaCopelandThe name of the supplement is OmegaGuard or it is included in the Vitalizer daily strip as well.