Omega 6 Vs Omega 3

A healthy diet contains a balance of omega 3 and omega 6 fatty acids. Unfortunately, the typical British diet tends to contain 10 to 20 times more omega 6 fatty acids than omega 3's dueto omega 6 fats being found in productssuch as sunflower oil, corn oil and soybean oil. Because these ingredients are cheap they are heavily used in manyprocessed foods. If the ingredient list says 'vegetable oil', it is almost certainlyloaded with Omega 6.While omega 6 is essential for skin and hair growth, to maintain bone health, regulate metabolism, and maintain the reproductive system, it is also pro-inflammatory and excess intake is associated with many illnesses such as cardiovascular disease, some diabetes, obesity, inflammatory bowel disease, arthritis, asthma, cancer... even some psychiatric disorders.However, omega 3 is anti-inflammatory, and food high in omega 3 such as oily fish (or a high quality omega 3 supplement) is useful in dealing with all of the above conditions.One of the best things you can do for your health is to cut down the omega 6 sources by eating fresh, unprocessed foods and using organic butter, ghee, olive oil or coconut oil. And if you do not consume any fish, particularly "oily fish" such as mackerel or sardines, try using an omega 3 supplement in your diet.There are manyOmega 3 supplementson the market, but most contain just 100-120mg of Omega 3's essential components (EPA and DHA) so one 1000mg capsule would only equate to 3-4% of the recommended daily intake.There is a very substantial body of evidence stating that increasing our intake of Omega 3 to roughly 3000mg per day is a key component of good health.The benefits seen in most Omega 3 research involve daily doses of 3000mgtotal EPA and DHA. Here is a brief summary of some of the findings:Inuits of Greenland eat around 13,000mg of Omega 3 a day. It was the study of their incredibly low rates of heart disease, although they have a veryhigh fat diet, that sparked the Omega 3 revolution.Japanese people eat an incredible amount of fish and Omega 3 every day and have one of the world's most long-lived, healthiest populations.The Mediterranean diet, renowned for its contribution to a healthy active lifestyle, typically includes many oily fish, especially Sardines, which is very rich in Omega 3.Several eminent health organisations around the world recommend taking large doses of Omega 3, including the American Heart Association.Article Source:http://EzineArticles.com/expert/Simon_Wishy/2245374