Omega-3 Fatty Acids -- Mental Health

A friend of mine who registered as a customer recently, noticed that since she had been taking MonaVie for the last week -- that she was noticing that she seemed to be calmer throughout the day.

I found some science that explains more about why this may be occuring.

One interesting tidbit of information that I picked up on is: 20% of the brains dry-weight is made up of fatty-acids.

http://addadhdadvances.com/efa-depression.html

Snippet~

Omega-3 fatty acids are long-chain, polyunsaturated fatty acids, which must be obtained through the diet. Long chain omega-3 fatty acids, like eicosapentaenoic (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) can be ingested directly from foods such as fish or fish oil. Alternately they can be manufactured in the liver from alpha linolenic acid (ALA), a shorter omega-3 fatty acid. This conversion is limited. Only 5-15% of ALA is ultimately converted. Aging, illness and stress, as well as high amounts of omega-6 rich oils, such as corn, safflower, sunflower, or cottonseed oil interfere with the conversion.

Fish oil contains high levels of the omega-3 fatty acids EPA and DHA. Flax seed oil contains high amounts of ALA. The dietary intake of these oils has dramatically declined in Western countries over the last century. The ideal dietary ratio of omega-6 to omega-3 fats is approximately 2:1. The ratio of omega-6 to omega-3 fats in the average American diet is about 20:1.

Given that approximately 20% of the dry weight of the brain is made up of fatty acids it would not be surprising if inadequate intake of omega-3 fatty acids would have some neuropsychiatric consequences. There is a lot of research linking low levels of omega-3 fatty acids to numerous psychiatric conditions and many indications that omega-3 fatty acids have therapeutic value.