What Are the Health Benefits of Omega-3 Fatty Acid Fish Oil?

Fish oil is a source of omega-3 essential fatty acids. Essential fatty acids are fatty acids that the body requires for proper functioning but cannot produce on its own.

Function

• Fatty acids are necessary for the building of new cells and for the production of the body's chemical messengers known as prostaglandins.

Types

• There are two basic types of essential fatty acids: omega-3, found primarily in fish oils; and omega-6, found primarily in nut and seed oils.

Benefits

• Essential fatty acids are important for normal brain development and function, improving skin and hair, reducing blood pressure, helping prevent arthritis, lowering cholesterol and triglyceride levels, and reducing the risk of blood clots.

Expert Insight

• Nutritionist Phyllis A. Balch, CNC, warns not to rely on cod liver oil as a source for omega-3 fatty acids because you would have to overdose on vitamins A and D to obtain the necessary amount of omega-3. A better source of omega-3 fatty acids is salmon oil, which contains 12 times the omega-3 as cod liver oil.

Warning

• Diabetics should not take fish oil supplements because of the high fat content, but they should consume fish for essential fatty acids.