What are "omega-3 fatty acids"?

What are "omega-3 fatty acids"?

Susan Silberstein & Marilyn Joyce (Health and Nutrition Educator & Heath Counselor) gives expert video advice on: How do fats become nutritionally unsafe?; What foods have the most omega-3 fatty acids? and more...

Omega-3 fatty acids are essential fatty acids. We must get them from our diet; we cannot get them from our body. The body does not make them so it is essential to get them from the foods we eat. The greatest plant source of Omega-3 fatty acids is flak seeds. Ground flak seeds are great to add to anything; smoothies, soups, salad dressings, whatever. Flak seed oil is another alternative but with that we don't have the high concentration of lignants or the fibre that is in the flak seed, so you need the complex of both. In the fish family, we know that there are certain fish that are extremely high in omega-3 fatty acids, predominantly wild fish. The farm fish may or may not have the omega-3s but the wild fish definitely do, especially we hear salmon, ahi tuna, or sea bass. These are good quality fish for the omega-3s. Omega-3 fatty acids are essential for brain function, for cellular integrity; for cellular function in general. Omega-3 fatty acids have been shown to reduce the risk of Alzheimer's disease, cancer, and heart disease, and the list goes on. It's just very essential to get these Omega-3 fatty acids into our body in order to function normally.