EPA/DHA Formula   -  Essential Fatty Acids

• It is important to avoid consuming too much fat, but fat is a critical component of a healthful diet. 
• While it is true that most people consume far too much fat on a daily basis, there are two fats that are essential in the diet for sound health and are referred to as essential fatty acids (EFA’s). These 2 EFAs are alpha linolenic acid (ALA), an omega-3 fat, and linoleic acid, an omega-6 fat. 
• Fats from both the omega-3 and omega-6 groups are critical to good health, but they must be kept in balance. Today there is a problem maintaining this balance. 
  
• Two families of unsaturated fats--the omega-6 fats, found mainly in plant-based oils, and the omega-3 fats, found in fish, walnuts, and flaxseeds--were in relative balance a century ago. 
• The modern diet now emphasizes omega-6 fats by as much as 25 to 1.
• These fats encourage inflammation, while omega-3 fats are anti-inflammatory. 
• Since inflammatory processes have an important role in degenerative disease, this long-term imbalance is a major contributor to chronic disease.

Coming Back to Balance

• The easiest way to bring the omega-3 : omega-6 ratio into balance is to decrease consumption of omega-6 vegetable oils like corn and safflower oil and eat more omega-3 rich fish and fish oil.
  
• The dry weight of your brain is 60% fat. 
• The type of fat you incorporate into your brain reflects the type of fat you put into your mouth. 
• The omega-3 fatty acids, EPA and DHA are the preferred brain fats. Essentially the only place you can obtain these fatty acids is by eating fish and other seafood. The old wives’ tale “Fish is brain food” is correct. 
• If you don’t eat fish and consume other less desirable fats such as the trans-fats found in margarine or heated rancid fats such as are typically found when food is deep fried, your brain incorporates these fatty acids into its infrastructure. 
• The brain does not operate nearly as well on these less desirable fats.
  
• Omega-3 fattyacids are found in phytoplankton, a marine plant, which is eaten by fatty fish such as salmon, mackerel, albacore tuna, halibut, and sardines. 
• The importance of omega-3 fats was first recognized from research on the Eskimos. Although the traditional Eskimo diet is extraordinarily high in fat, the rate of heart disease and cancer found among Eskimos is low. 
• The primary fat in the Eskimo diet is omega-3.
  
  
• According to the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, eating as little as one gram of omega-3 fatty acids daily may reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease by as much as 40 percent. 
• Omega-3 fats appear to prevent the formation of atherosclerotic plaque, which can hamper the flow of blood to the heart. 
• They act as blood thinners as well and may help prevent the formation of blood clots that can cause heart attacks.
• A study from Denmark showed that men who consumed more than 20 grams (about 2/3 ounce) of fish per day had a lower risk of stroke than those who ate less fish.
  
• Our fish oil is in strict compliance with California Proposition 65 and we have on hand a Certificate of Analysis for our EPA / DHA product. 
• The guidelines set in the proposition are at <3ppm for the heavy metals and our formula comes in at <1ppm.
  
  Dosage
  
• The current RDA for omega-3 fats is 1100 mg for women and 1600 mg for men. Each capsule of Ray & Terry’s EPA/DHA Formula contains 1000 mg of fish oil of which 180 mg is EPA and 120 mg is DHA.
  
  We recommend 2 capsules twice a day for a total of 4000 mg of omega-3 (1200 mg of EPA/DHA). 
• This is an adequate dose for women, but men can obtain the RDA minimum by eating at least 2 servings of fish each week in addition to the 4 capsules of EPA/DHA a day. 
• Otherwise, men need to take 3 capsules twice a day.
  
  
• Ray & Terry’s EPA/DHA is equally effective when taken with or without food. However, if your digestive system is sensitive, you may want to take your supplements with meals.