Essential Fatty Acids And what They Can Do For You

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By Shannon Clark


If you were to ask what the absolute most beneficial supplement you could take would be, 9 times out of 10 the answer for most people would be an essential fatty acid. There may be a few rare people out there who consume enough essential fatty acids in their diets that they do not need to concern themselves with this but for the vast majority of individuals it is something to think about if long term health as well as short-term results are a goal you are striving for.

So what is so great about these essential fatty acids? Plenty. Below you will find the top 4 reasons they are beneficial for you. Do NOT overlook this important nutrient any longer. If you miss out on it you are unconsciously setting yourself up for increased health risks in the future. Since they are readily available in supplement form at a relatively cost effective price, there is absolutely no reason why you should miss out on what they have to offer.

Benefit # 1: Enhance Fat Loss

One of the most important benefits of essential fatty acids as far as most people are going to be concerned is the enhanced fat loss effects they have on the body. Through a few different mechanisms free fatty acids are able to help you reduce excess body fat, especially around the abdominal area. For women, this is the body fat that is often very stubborn to remove so it is welcome news that this product is actually going to target it.

Furthermore, if you take FFA (free fatty acids) during a period of time when you are trying to gain lean muscle mass and are therefore eating in a caloric surplus, they may also help to prevent you from gaining additional fat mass along with this new muscle tissue. As a few of you are aware, that can be an annoying problem that you deal with because then once you finally have added the muscle you are looking for, you must embark on a dieting phase to lean down again. Including a daily FFA dose to your diet can help eliminate this problem! It appears too that FFA do work best in individuals who are already exercising, as opposed to those who lead a more sedentary lifestyle, so this is something to keep in mind if you are looking to lose fat but have not yet started a structured workout plan.

Additionally, with regards to fat loss, FFA can help to increase insulin sensitivity, which means that your body is going to be able to handle any carbohydrates you eat better, thus reducing the chances that they turn into body fat. Someone who is insulin resistant (doesn't have good insulin sensitivity), upon eating carbohydrate-rich foods will release a great deal of the hormone insulin to try and deal with this. Insulin can be thought of as the 'storage' hormone so the more of it you have floating throughout your body the higher the chances that any excess calories consumed will be moved directly to the fat stores on your thighs, stomach and hips.

Benefit # 2 Improved Muscle Gain

The next benefit is really going to spark interest in all the males out there who are looking to bulk up. Upon taking FFA, some individuals find that when eating hypercalorically (more calories are being taken in than needed to maintain body weight - in an effort to gain muscle), more of these additional calories are partitioned towards the muscle cell, thus enhancing the gain of lean muscle mass as opposed to being stored in the adipose tissue. This is great news as when you do gain weight, provided there is a good strength training program going on at the same time, you will usually see a gain ratio of about 1:1 or if you are lucky 2:1 with respect to muscle to fat. If you can increase these even further, gaining say 3 pounds of muscle to every pound of fat, you are way ahead of the game.

FFA also help to increase the blood flow which allows more nutrients and oxygen to get into the muscle tissue and improve muscle recovery between sessions. This allows you to train again sooner and go harder, thus indirectly resulting in more muscle gains.

Benefit # 3 Better Health And Longevity

Far too many hardcore exercisers are only thinking of short-term results and forget to consider some of the long term consequences of things they are doing in terms of their diet and training plan. While what they are doing may get them great results in terms of muscle gain and fat loss, it could also be setting them up for numerous health problems down the road.

Two of the biggest benefits that FFA offer is a protection against the risk of developing heart disease and cancer. As these are two of the more major health issues that people deal with in today's world, anything you can do right now to prevent them is extremely important.

Another benefit of FFA is that is serves to help reduce bodily inflammation. This can cause a number of different problems, not only for your training but also for the condition of your heart, so keeping this in control is vital to ensure long-term wellness.

Essential fatty acids will also help to make the blood less likely to form clots that lead to heart attacks as well as protecting against irregular heart beats that can cause sudden death. They will help to reduce the triglyceride levels in the body and slow down the growth of atherosclerotic plaque, thus improving arterial health and lowering blood pressure.

Benefit #4 Increased Mental and Brain Health

FFA consumption has been shown to boost the effectiveness of antidepressants therefore patients who are currently suffering from this mental health condition can recover faster without the need for increased concentrations of medication. These people will also likely show a decrease in anxiety and sleeping problems after assuming a FFA supplementation program, both of which are notable symptoms of a depressed person.

For the average person, FFA intakes can also help improve overall mood, thus increasing your outlook on life and giving you the motivation to make other health-conductive behaviours like sticking to a healthy diet and exercise program.

FFA supplements are now also being used to treat individuals with Alzheimer's, ADHD as well as autism so this is yet another reason to include them in your diet - prevention!

Lastly, FFA can serve to boost the memory and improve concentration levels. For anyone who works a tedious job or spends long hours studying, this will be a very nice added benefit.

So if you are not currently supplementing your diet with essential fatty acids, I would highly suggest you look into it. Taken in capsule form, the best recommendation would be 6 grams on a daily basis. Be aware that you can get essential fatty acids from foods as well, typical examples being fatty fish, flax and tofu, however as already stated most individuals are simply not going to get the recommended dosage from food alone. This makes capsules the most ideal solution.

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Aaron  says:
2 years ago

Nice article essential fatty acids are crucial in a persons diet take 2 capsules a day minimum.

regards to you

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