Omega-3s and Weight Loss
Posted on Aug 24th 2009 1:00PM by Jonny BowdenFiled Under: Jonny's Take, Diet & Weight Loss
Jonny Bowden, author, nutritionist and weight loss coach cuts through all the misconceptions about diet and fitness to help you transform your body, your health and your life.
I've been touting the benefits of omega-3 fats for a long time. They lower triglycerides, improve circulation and cell health, boost mood and decrease inflammation. But can they help with weight loss?
Maybe so. New findings reported in the British Journal of Nutrition found that overweight and obese people have lower levels of omega-3 fatty acids than people with a healthy weight.
"Our findings suggest that (omega-3) fatty acids may play an important role in weight status and abdominal (obesity)," wrote the researchers, led by Professor Monohar Garg from the University of Newcastle, and president elect of the Nutrition Society of Australia.
Other research has shown that omega-3s have a protective role in preventing obesity. "Previous studies involving children and adolescents have shown a negative correlation between adiposity (fatness) and [blood levels] of omega-3s," explained the researchers.
In the current study, researchers looked at 124 people who they then classified at a healthy weight (21), overweight (40) or obese (63). Blood samples were taken from all the subjects after they fasted for at least 10 hours.
Here's what the researchers found: An inverse relationship between omega-3s and BMI, waist size and hip circumference. In other words, those with the lowest levels of omega-3s were more likely to be in the highest weight categories (overweight or obese). None of the subjects were taking omega-3 supplements.
This not the first time a relationship between omega-3s and obesity has been suggested by research. Back in 2006, Czech researchers assigned 20 obese women to either a very-low-calorie diet plus omega-3s, or a plain old very low-calorie diet without supplements. The Czechs found significantly greater "fat-burning" ability in the omega-3 groups.
"The message is not that omega-3s are magic bullets that can counteract the effects of eating too many calories," points out health journalist and my friend, Craig Wetherby.
"It appears that calorie-balanced diets -- i.e., those containing just enough to meet metabolic needs," Wetherby says, "aid weight loss better when they include ample amounts of the marine-source omega-3s found so abundantly in fish oil and fatty fish."
It's worth pointing out that there's always a problem with these studies, which I call the "chicken and the egg" problem. Do omega-3s actually help you lose weight? Or are people who consume more omega-3s more likely to pay attention to their nutrition and have healthier habits in general? And the answer is: We don't know. We do know that omega-3s are highly anti-inflammatory, and that inflammation is a big component of obesity, and I personally know of at least two weight loss experts who recommend high levels of omega-3s as part of their program for clients -- and both tend to get good results.
The take-home point is this: Get a healthy dose of omega-3s (as supplements or from food sources or, preferably, from both). We already know that they have many benefits, and it's just possible that they might give your weight loss efforts a kick in the pants to boot.
For more information on nutrition and weight loss, visit www.jonnybowden.com.
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| Photo: sxc.hu |
Maybe so. New findings reported in the British Journal of Nutrition found that overweight and obese people have lower levels of omega-3 fatty acids than people with a healthy weight.
"Our findings suggest that (omega-3) fatty acids may play an important role in weight status and abdominal (obesity)," wrote the researchers, led by Professor Monohar Garg from the University of Newcastle, and president elect of the Nutrition Society of Australia.
Other research has shown that omega-3s have a protective role in preventing obesity. "Previous studies involving children and adolescents have shown a negative correlation between adiposity (fatness) and [blood levels] of omega-3s," explained the researchers.
In the current study, researchers looked at 124 people who they then classified at a healthy weight (21), overweight (40) or obese (63). Blood samples were taken from all the subjects after they fasted for at least 10 hours.
Here's what the researchers found: An inverse relationship between omega-3s and BMI, waist size and hip circumference. In other words, those with the lowest levels of omega-3s were more likely to be in the highest weight categories (overweight or obese). None of the subjects were taking omega-3 supplements.
This not the first time a relationship between omega-3s and obesity has been suggested by research. Back in 2006, Czech researchers assigned 20 obese women to either a very-low-calorie diet plus omega-3s, or a plain old very low-calorie diet without supplements. The Czechs found significantly greater "fat-burning" ability in the omega-3 groups.
"The message is not that omega-3s are magic bullets that can counteract the effects of eating too many calories," points out health journalist and my friend, Craig Wetherby.
"It appears that calorie-balanced diets -- i.e., those containing just enough to meet metabolic needs," Wetherby says, "aid weight loss better when they include ample amounts of the marine-source omega-3s found so abundantly in fish oil and fatty fish."
It's worth pointing out that there's always a problem with these studies, which I call the "chicken and the egg" problem. Do omega-3s actually help you lose weight? Or are people who consume more omega-3s more likely to pay attention to their nutrition and have healthier habits in general? And the answer is: We don't know. We do know that omega-3s are highly anti-inflammatory, and that inflammation is a big component of obesity, and I personally know of at least two weight loss experts who recommend high levels of omega-3s as part of their program for clients -- and both tend to get good results.
The take-home point is this: Get a healthy dose of omega-3s (as supplements or from food sources or, preferably, from both). We already know that they have many benefits, and it's just possible that they might give your weight loss efforts a kick in the pants to boot.
For more information on nutrition and weight loss, visit www.jonnybowden.com.
