What Are The Benefits Of Flaxseed Oil Supplements?

There are three different omega 3 acids. The most beneficial omega 3 acid to the body is called DHA and this along with another major Omega 3 acid called EPA are the two main important polyunsaturated omega-3 acids essential for human development.

Both are good for your health and both are found fish oil supplements because they are present in the oil found in fish.

But these 2 are not the only Omega 3 fats. There's also some plant based Omega 3 fats. ALA, or Alpha-linolenic acid, is an Omega fat that is found in plants and particularly in flaxseeds. So the benefits of flax seed oil are often promoted along with the benefits of fish oil.

So let's see what are the health benefits of flax seed oil as an Omega 3 health supplement. It is not only in flax seeds that you find Omega three fats in the oil, you can also find these fats in the oil of other plant-based foods such as walnuts. However it is most common in flax seeds. That is why flax seeds are used in the major plant-based Omega 3 supplement.

The benefits of flax seed oil are primarily the ability of the body to use the ALA from the oil and turn it into DHA and EPA. The ALA is not used directly by the body, but the benefit of the ALA is in the DHA and EPA that results from its conversion.

The main difference between DHA, EPA and ALA is in the different carbon bonds of each of the molecules. There are highly complex chemical reasons for this. However, the bottom line is that the body can use DHA and EPA directly, where it cannot use ALA without changing it into the other two acids first.

There are no proven health benefits of flax seed oil supplements except in the ability of the body to convert ALA to these other two omega 3 fatty acids.

Therefore the medical benefits of flaxseed oil lie in the ability of the body to convert the ALA. Unfortunately the body is not very efficient in doing this, and only a small proportion of the ALA is actually converted. Of course if you took a lot of flaxseed oil supplements your body may be able to convert enough to satisfy the need for an adequate amount of DHA and EPA.

But why not get your DHA and EPA directly, from fish oil supplements, rather than indirectly, from flaxseed oil capsules? It's more efficient to do it that way. Use the best fish oil capsules and you'll get your DHA and EPA direct, and at better value.

However there are people who see an advantage of using flax seed oil capsules. For example vegetarians who would not eat fish are unable to take fish oil supplements. So should they be taking flax seed oil capsules?

For vegetarians who don't eat fish it's much better to take flaxseed oil supplements than it is to get no Omega 3 fats at all. If vegetarians eat no fish at the moment, they will be very deficient in the important healthy, polyunsaturated fatty acids, and so should be taking some form of Omega 3 supplements.

However, you can also get vegetarian Omega three capsules that are sourced from marine sources that do not have fish oil. These come from algae which is where the fish get their Omega 3 fats from originally in any event.

So it is possible to get marine based vegetarian Omega 3 supplements. Whether these are better than flax seed oil supplements will be the subject of another article.

Concluding my article about the benefits of flax seed oil is quite clear that there are benefits from taking flax seed oil supplements however these benefits are much less than the benefits of taking fish oil supplements. The benefits of flax seed oil come from the ability of the human body to convert a plant-based Omega three fats into a marine-based Omega three fat.

It's quite clear that flax seeds are good for you, and if you have the opportunity you ought to eat them by taking flax seed supplements is not as good value as taking the best fish oil supplements.

Visit my website to find out where to source the best Omega 3 fish oil supplements.

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