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December 7, 2009

Should You Eat Mercury Contaminated Fish To Get More Omega 3 Essential Fatty Acids?

The health benefits of omega3 essential fatty acids have been well publicised recently and it is becoming well known that most of us are deficient in the omega3 oils that are so important to our good health. Omega 3 essential fatty acids are found in fish oil, which obviously comes from fish. But if fish are contaminated with Mercury then what should we do?

A new study published this year has shed some light on the Mercury contamination of fish. The study examined Mercury contamination of fish in the North Pacific and found that levels of Mercury in that ocean had increased by 30 percent over the last 10 years.

Not only that but it also concluded that around 40 percent of all Mercury exposure of people in the US came from tuna consumption from tuna caught in the Pacific.

This is seriously worrying, because you do not want to be eating too much Mercury. It is a neurotoxin and it has serious health implications for adults, but in particular for the fetus and for infants.

The major causes of Mercury contamination in the Pacific were found to be atmospheric Mercury production as well as Mercury leakage from parts of Asia. The Mercury is in the form of methylmercury, and this works it’s way from the bottom of the food chain to the major fish at the top of the food chain such as tuna and shark, both of which feature largely in our intake of fish.

So there is a dilemma here for anyone wishing to increase their intake of omega3 essential fatty acids from eating more fish. If you eat more fish you get more Omega3 oils in your diet however you also increase your level of Mercury consumption.

Not only that but fish is a declining resource and is also getting more and more expensive with time. Is there a better way to increase your intake of omega3 fatty acids other than by eating fish? Yes.

Much more cost-effective than eating fish and also safer is to increase your Omega3 intake levels by daily supplementation with omega3 supplements. These are much more cost-effective than buying fish and the very best fish oil supplements are free of Mercury contamination and are safe to be taken daily. As a result of these fats the sales of fish oil supplements are increasing faster than any other nutritional supplement in history.

However if you like eating fish, you recognize the expense involved from eating fish and that you may be increasing your Mercury levels then eating fish is a good way to increase your intake of Omega3 fats. But if you don’t like fish, if you don’t want to undertake the extra expense of buying fish and you prefer not to take more Mercury in your diet then there is a much more cost effective and safer alternative, namely omega3 supplements.

But it’s worth saying that there are big variations between the different brands of omega 3 supplements, with the best fish oil capsules having more than 2 1/2 times as much omega 3 fats as average fish oil supplements.

To find out how to compare the various omega3 supplements available to find those that are safe and cost effective visit my website.

Want to know more about the health benefits of Fish Oil? Or more about Omega3 Fatty Acids? Visit Peter’s Website Healthy Omega 3 Fish Oil.

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