The benefits of omega 3 essential fatty acids, primarily DHA (docosahexaenoic acid) and EPA (eicosapentaenoic acid), are well known, and in particular the heart benefits of omega 3 fats. However for people with high triglycerides there is another reason to increase the amount of omega 3 fats for lowering triglycerides.

Almost all of us eat a diet that is too low in the essential fatty acids known as omega 3 fats. These are found in fish oil and the research has clearly established that by increasing the amount of fish oil in our diet we improve our heart health and also attract a range of other health benefits.

Some of the heart benefits of increasing your intake of omega 3 essential fatty acids include a reduction in the risk of arrhythmia, which can lead to fatal heart attack, a reduction in blood pressure and a decrease in the growth rate of plaque in the arteries. But for our purposes today the research also show a decrease in triglycerides levels.

Triglycerides are a form of fat that can be manufactured in the body from the food you eat and exist in the blood. Having high triglycerides increases the risk of blood clots and can also lead to a lowering of your HDL (good) cholesterol. Basically high triglycerides are linked to coronary artery disease. And high triglycerides can also be a risk factor in some other diseases, for example diabetes.

By eating a diet with a high level of saturated fat and sugar you may be contributing to higher than normal triglyceride levels. And other risk factors are being overweight and excess alcohol consumption.

So lowering triglycerides is very important for many people who want to know how to lower triglycerides.

There are a range of things that you can do to lower triglycerides if you have a problem, including reducing the amount of fatty foods and in particular foods was saturated fats, eating less sugar and exercising more. Also important is reducing alcohol intake and try to lose weight if you are overweight.

But now it is also clear that if you increase your intake of omega 3 essential fatty acids found in fish oil that can also be a big part of any strategy for lowering your triglyceride levels.

For example a statement published on the website of the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition concludes that “omega-3 fatty acids from fish oil decreased serum triglyceride concentrations by 25% to 30%,” and “A dose-response relationship exists between omega-3 fatty acid intake and triglyceride lowering”.

So it is now clear that improving your level of intake of omega 3 essential fatty acids can help lower triglycerides and because this is now clearly established the American Heart Association tells people with high triglycerides to maintain a level of intake of 2 to 4 grams per day of DHA and EPA by way of fish oil supplements under the care of a physician.

Many people in our society suffer from higher than recommended triglyceride levels. This then is good news for them, providing them with another weapon in the arsenal to help lower triglycerides naturally.

And as well as helping to lower triglycerides increasing Omega3 intake offers you a wide range of other health and heart benefits.

This is difficult simply by eating fish because fish is contaminated with mercury and is expensive. However there are excellent fish oil supplements available which are not contaminated and which are much more cost-effective to be taken daily. But not all supplements are as good as others.

Visit my website to find out how to compare the various fish oil supplements available, (and which ones I take myself).

Sales of fish oil pills are growing faster than sales of any other nutritional supplement in history. Lets look at why fish oil pills, sometimes called omega 3 pills or omega 3 supplements, are selling so fast and why you should be taking them as well.

There are 2 essential fatty acids known as omega 3 fatty acids. These are called DHA (docosahexaenoic acid) and EPA (eicosapentaenoic acid), and they are good fats. Contrary to what you may have heard about diet fats in your diet are not all bad.

There are some bad fats, in particular saturated fat which is primarily found in animal products such as red meat and chicken. However there are also good fats which are extremely important to your health. The omega 3 fatty acids called essential fatty acids are extremely important to your health and are not manufactured in your body. Therefore the only way you can get Omega 3 fatty acids into you is by taking oil fish pills, or eating a lot of fish.

Studies have shown that way too many of us, in fact almost all of us in the US, have too little omega 3 fatty acids in our diet. Studies of populations in countries where fish and seafood are important in the diet show that these people have much better heart health than we do and the studies show that this is a result of their superior intake of fish.

There’s a wide range of health benefits from increasing your intake of essential fatty acids. These health benefits include improvments in heart health and these are now recognized by the American Heart Association which recommends minimum intakes of DHA and EPA for each of us every week. They suggest eating more fish or else taking Omega 3 capsules.

The health benefits include a reduced risk of death from heart disease and heart attack, lowering triglycerides, lowering blood pressure and reducing the build of plaque in the arteries. Other health benefits include an improvement in brain function and memory, a reduction in the risk of macular degeneration causing blindness in older age and a reduction in a range of inflammatory diseases such as arthritis and lots lots more.

There is also ample evidence that pregnant women should be taking Omega 3 supplements because DHA and EPA, and in particular DHA, is an essential part of brain development and that if pregnant women are DHA deficient this can negatively affect the brain development of the fetus. Equally it is important for breastfeeding women to supplement with DHA and EPA because these become available to the infant through the breastmilk, and are important to the infant for the same reason. Studies show that children with an adequate supply of Omega3 fats through their developmental years do better on IQ tests.

It is quite clear that we need more DHA and EPA in our diets, but how? Of course we can all eat more fish but fish is very expensive and only certain types of fish, namely oily fish, have high levels of Omega3 fats. Fish is generally contaminated with toxins and the FDA tells us to limit our intake of fish for this reason.

However Omega 3 pills offer the perfect solution. These are small capsules of fish oil which can be taken easily. For children it is simply a matter of cutting the top off the capsule and tipping the oil onto their food. The best fish oil pills are entirely contamination free and a much more cost-effective than eating fish, and can safely be taken daily.

Note that not all Omega 3 capsules are as good as others and the best fish oil supplements contain way more of the active ingredient DHA than the worst.

Every day I take fish oil pills with my breakfast and give them to my family. I take what are, in my view, the worlds best fish oil pills. If you’d like to find out more about these Omega 3 supplements visit my website.

Much is talked about high blood pressure and the need to reduce it, but how high is ?High? and what is the optimum?

Look at the four blood pressure categories below and then determine which category you fall into.

If your blood pressure reading is in two different categories where systolic pressure is in one category and diastolic pressure is in another, then your correct blood pressure category is the higher one. For example, if your blood pressure reading is 119/85 you have Pre-hypertension.

Below 120 and Below 80 is considered Normal blood pressure.
120-139 and 80-89 is considered Pre-hypertension.
140-159 and 90-99 is considered Stage 1 hypertension.
160 or more and 100 or more is considered Stage 2 hypertension.

The 1st Number represents Systolic pressure. This is the pressure generated when the heart contracts.
The 2nd Number represents Diastolic pressure. This is the blood pressure when the heart is relaxed.

It is not possible to determine what blood pressure category you are in by taking just one reading. Blood pressure readings should be taken at four or five equally spaced periods throughout the day whilst you are at rest and these readings should be taken over seven days. The numbers should then be averaged to give a representative reading

It is important to understand just how dangerous high blood pressure is.

High blood pressure is a very high risk factor for congestive heart failure. This is a serious condition in which the heart is unable to pump enough blood to supply the functional needs of your body. The result of your heart failing to pump enough blood can result in kidney damage and in extreme cases, even a stroke.

In relation to your kidneys, if high blood pressure remains untreated it can damage both the blood vessels feeding the kidneys and the kidney filtering membranes ? called nephrons – as well.

High blood pressure is a leading risk factor for a stroke as well as creating the ideal condition for “a bleed” in the brain which can be just as life threatening.

Many patients who need to undergo heart bypass surgery need to do so because of damage initially caused by high blood pressure.

Here is a summary of the effects of high blood pressure:

Damage to cerebral tissues or stoke, resulting in convulsions, impaired speech and impaired body function including partial or total paralysis.

Atherosclerosis which is hardening of the walls of the arteries. This raises the risk for heart disease and further increases the severity of high blood pressure in a ?vicious circle? of cause and effect coronary heart disease of varying severity.

If you discover that you have high blood pressure, you need to find a suitable method to reduce it, and you should treat this as very urgent. Delay is to be avoided, especially since you may have been unknowingly suffering with high blood pressure for quite some time prior to discovery.

Undoubtedly you should consult with your doctor, but you may also wish to discuss with your doctor alternatives to prescription drugs that although are very effective, do have some very unpleasant side effects.

Some known non prescription drug methods for effectively lowering blood pressure include meditation, aerobic exercise, controlled breathing exercises, healthy diet and stress management.

If you are a tobacco smoker you should without question seek urgent help to quit as quickly as possible. You may also need to understand that nicotine replacement (patches, gum etc) may not be suitable to assist you as they may actually exacerbate the condition.

The health benefits to your heart from increasing your intake of omega 3 essential fatty acids found in fish oil are well established and the American Heart Association now recommends a minimum intake of Omega3 fats for everyone for these reasons. These health benefits apply to such risks as cardiovascular disease, but today let’s examine whether there is a fish oil blood pressure link, or whether increasing your intake of omega 3 essential fatty acids can lower high blood pressure.

High blood pressure, otherwise known as hypertension, affects many people in our population. Particularly those who are overweight can suffer from high blood pressure and may well spend years on drugs designed to lower blood pressure. If there is an omega 3 blood pressure link this may be good news to many peopleHigh blood pressure is called hypertension and effects very many people. People who are overweight have a higher risk of hypertension and some of these people may spend many years on drugs designed to reduce hypertension. If there is an omega 3 blood pressure link this is good news for many people.

Studies have shown a clear link between fish oil and lowering bloodpressure. One study, of 120 subjects, split the subjects into 5 groups and supplemented their diet with varying combinations of fish or fish oil supplements, or both, or a placebo, and concluded that supplementation with omega 3 lowers blood pressure.

DHA (docosahexaenoic acid) and EPA (eicosapentaenoic acid) are the 2 primary essential fatty acids known as omega 3 fats. A further study narrowed down the cause and effect and isolated DHA as the principle cause of this reduction in blood pressure.

People who are overweight have an increased risk of cardiovascular disease and hypertension. Another study examined lowering hypertension with omega3 in overweight people. Again this study found a clear link between increasing intake of essential fatty acids and lowering blood pressure, including amongst overweight people, and concluded that increasing the intake of fishoil with omega 3 essential fatty acids can help reduce hypertension and when taken in conjunction with a weight-loss regime in people who are already taking antihypertensive drugs can “substantially” reduce their dependence on those drugs.

There’s a wide range of important health reasons to increase your intake of the omega 3 fats found in fish oil and these health reasons now, it seems, include reducing blood pressure. But even if you don’t have a problem with hypertension there are still powerful health reasons to add more Omega 3 fats into your diet, including a reduction in the risk of coronary heart disease and a wide range of other lifestyle and age related health problems.

The science is now clear and for this reason the American Heart Association recommends minimum intakes of omega 3 for all of us. As over 90 percent of us have dietary intakes of Omega3 fats that are inadequate we should all be taking notice of this advice, including anyone with hyperension.

Clearly there is a blood pressure Omega 3 link. Increasing your intake of Omega3 fats will help lower blood pressure and may also help lower your reliance on antihypertensive drugs.

So how do you increase your intake of Omega3 fats? You could eat more fish but fish is expensive and contaminated with mercury and for this reason the FDA tells us not to eat too much fish.

But it is perfectly adequate and indeed preferable, and very cost effective to take daily omega 3 supplements, and the best ones are contamination free, though there is a wide variation in the quality of the different brands.

I have examined the range of fish oil capsules available carefully. Visit my website to find out which Omega 3 supplements I choose for myself and my family.

To reduce the level of cholesterol is necessary because its high levels in the bloodstream increase the danger of coronary heart illness. In case the cholesterol level in your bloodstream is abnormally high, follow the below mentioned guidelines to reduce it.

Step 1: Control Fat and Cholesterol intake in your diet
The first and the most elementary step to lower the cholesterol levels in your blood is to curb the OTT intake of fat and fat. Use more of monosaturated oils, including olive and canola oils, in your diet instead of butter and oils high in saturated greasy acids.

Similarly, stop consuming high cholesterol food items like eggs, polyunsaturated oils, butter, margarine or any other type of greasy dressing. Instead, include plenty of dietary fibre and entire cereals into your diet.

Step two : change Your Lifestyle
This is meant especially for all couch-potatoes. They have to give in on their habit of eating junk-food and lying around. It is time that they give up such a lifestyle or else it would be too late. Switch from junk-food to sensible food foods loaded in vital nutrients and fibre. Also, move off that couch and start doing some exercise. Play something in the field, do some running or cycling. That would help raise your rate of metabolism and enable you to quickly burn whatever you eat.

Step three : Take Medications if Nothing Helps
If lifestyle changes don’t help you lower cholesterol or the level of LDL or triglycerides in your blood stream is too high, you want to look for cholesterol lowering medications. Cholesterol lowering medicines can be divided into varied classes relying on which element of cholesterol you wish to work on – Cholesterol, LDL cholesterol or Triglycerides.

If your LDL levels are high, then you would medications such as statin and Vitamin B also known as Niacin. However, make sure that you don’t overdose Niacin as it may cause severe side effects. You should only consume a quantity as suggested by your doctor. The same is applicable for other cholesterol lowering medicines as well as an overdose of any medicine can have side effects.

Step 4: Increase HDL
Yes, you read it right. This cholesterol can help you bring down overall cholesterol levels in your body. That is why it is called good cholesterol levels in your body. Its optimum level in the body should be 60 mg/dL [ 1.55 mmol/L ]. Any level below it is considered perfect level in the body.

In case your body HDL Cholesterol falls below the formerly discussed levels, you can raise it thru the consumption of monosaturated oils [ olive oil ] and other items high in Vitamin B. However, you should not consume too much Vitamin B as it may have serious side-effects. You can also boost the level of this cholesterol in the body if you control the intake of alcohol.