Every winter, I seem to have some sort of biological craving for omega-3 supplements. I think it has something to do with my body's desire for additional sources of vitamin D. I also noticed that if I took enough fish or cod liver oil, my dry winter skin seemed to improve. Historically, I've always been serious about omega-3 consumption during the winter but would fall off supplementation in the summer.
Recently, I've learned some additional health benefits of fish oils that really motivate me to consistently take fish oils all year....especially in preparation for summer.
The older I get, the harder it is to stay lean. My metabolism is slower and my insulin sensitivity is lower. This results in my body holding on to more fat than if I had greater insulin sensitivity. Basically, insulin sensitivity is linked to your body's fat-burning (or fat-storing) mechanism. The more insulin sensitive you are, the better your body will be at using what you eat for energy (vs storing it).
I was today years old when I learned that fish oil can help increase insulin sensitivity and fat burn.
A study was done that involved women with diabetes. The study group was asked to consume 3 grams of fish oil daily for about 2 months. At the end of the study, the fish oil group lost an average of around 2 lbs. Sounds nice, right? But wait....it gets better. The researchers noted that the loss of fat was quite noticeable in the trunk (midsection) of the body.
In a different study, a group of mice were given a high-fat diet supplemented with fish oil. That group was then compared to a control group that ate unhealthy foods with no fish oil. The fish oil + fatty food group gained considerably less weight than the others. Researchers believed that fish oil might have the ability to "transform fat-storing cells into fat-burning cells."
In a human study, researchers concluded that supplementation (6 weeks) fish oil "significantly increased lean mass and decreased fat mass."
If these studies don't convince you of the fat-burning power of fish oil, check out this testimonial shared by someone on Reddit.
"About 2.5 years ago, I weighed 280. I started watching calorie intake, and I was taking vitamins and Omega 3-6-9 (fish oil). I lost 50 pounds over a year, and then it stalled out. I've been stuck at 230 for about 1.5 years now. And I've tried just about everything to try and figure out why. Various diet hacks, adding calories, reducing calories, etc... Nothing ever helped.
I started thinking about it, and I realized that around the time it stopped, I ran out of the Omega 3-6-9 pills, and never bought more. I've been having a lot of joint pain, like my hips, neck, back, etc... My brain always feels bad. In a bad mood, depressed, low energy, and exhausted all the time. I never felt motivated, it was hard to concentrate, and my brain just felt off. I was getting headaches too.
So I started thinking about the Omega pills and doing research. There's some websites that claim they help with weight loss. And others that claim they don't. But your body produces a hormone called cortisol when it's under stress. Cortisol makes your cells go into a panic mode where they start storing fat. And fish oil reduces cortisol levels. I started putting it together and I'm like...wait a minute. So, last week I ordered a big bag of Omega 3-6-9 pills.
Around Thursday, I started taking them. I went into work Friday, and my back, neck, and hips never started hurting. My brain didn't feel foggy. I got a lot done at work that day. Went through the weekend, and I felt like I had a lot more energy. It's like night and day. I've been back on them for about 5 days now, and I can already see the scale going down. I've already lost a few pounds, and it seems to be moving at the same rate back when I lost 50 pounds."
This person's experience, along with the bits from various studies, pretty much convinced me that fish oil plays an intensely critical role in fat metabolism and maintaining a healthy weight. I just returned from vacation and immediately started taking fish oil and got back on track. I've already lost a little bit of my vacation weight even though I've been less active since returning. I'm also planning on pairing fish oils with my other nootropics for an added brain boost.
I didn't even touch on the skin, hair, and heart benefits of fish oil. So, yeah, if you aren't taking fish oil right now, this is your sign to get back on track.
Post a Comment