Fish Oil Depression

Fish oil depression: does this make any sense, at all? Evidently, for many people it does, since this is a popularly searched-for phrase.  We decided to investigate why ... by M. Daniels, has been professionally writing and editing technical non-fiction articles and publications for over 3 decades.

The quick solution to the puzzles is that there is wide spread belief that fish oil cures depression.   But, like all quick answers, it isn't always as simple as it might appear.

You've certainly heard it said that "fish is brain food", and, it turns out that there is scientific evidence to support this. You see, some fish, such as wild salmon and trout, is high in concentrations of Omega-3 fatty acids. Among the important properties of these fatty acids is their role in  strengthening cell membranes of neurons. Further, it also seems to strengthens the connections between neurons — the ganglions. From this point it is reasoned that srong brains are more resistant to depression.

likelihood of clinical depression lowered

This doesn't say that depression only affects people who aren't very bright, because even the brighest of people can become depressed. What it does indicate is that there is a lower possibility of clinical depression when there's a strong brain involved, and Omega-3 fatty acids help build them.

We call Omega-3 an essential fatty acid because our body doesn't produce it, and we must synthesize it from what we eat. This is also true for Omega-6 fatty acids.

These two work together; Omega-6 fatty acids help the body fend off viral invaders and similar pathogens by enabling tissue inflammation. Omega-3, on the other hand, keeps inflammation from getting out of hand. This is important news since it is now widely thought that all forms of cancer are caused by inflammation.

Researchers tell us that we should be getting somewhere between a 1:1 to a 4:1 ratio of Omega-6 to Omega-3. The problem is that our customary diets which include the  wide use of vegetable, corn, and seed oils along with processed foods ends up withratios more like 10:1 to 20:1 since the average person's diet lacks sufficient amounts of fish, seafood, and legumes.

Supplementing Omega-3 through fish oil in clinical trials has added more to the fish oil depression story. Doctors have reported significant  success in treating young children who have manic-depression, depression, ADD, and ADHD using fish oil supplementation.  There have also been encouraging results from children with autism. It seems that some children have been completely cured by the fish oil or Omega-3 supplements, while others show more improvement using a mixture of the supplements and the synthetic drugs.

Neuroscientist Andrew L. Stoll, MD, of Harvard Medical School, has been researching the effects of fish oils on psychiatric patients who suffer from manic-depression ("bipolar disorder") since 1993, when he began looking for alternatives to lithium and other drug treatments because in spite of their success these all have been accompanied by  side effects that many patients find intolerable.

Writes Dr.Stoll:

Fish Oil / Depression: No panacea

Dr. Stoll is quick to caution that fish oil supplements should not be automatically regarded as a cure-all for those all sorts of depressive disorders. However, his research has created a definite fish oil / depression link.

So now you know the fish oil depression story. If this leads you to consider that they might be right for you, we believe that the fish oil supplements from Xtend Life  is one of the tops.

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