By: Benedict Smythe
Submitted: 2009-09-30 20:11:32 | Word Count: 536
The past few years has led to many studies devoted to finding foods that can actually aid in weight loss. One of the foods that might potentially help in burning human body fat is fish oil. Fish oil is consumed either by:
• Eating the fish directly
• Taking fish oil supplements
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• Taking fish oil in its raw form (sold in bottles)
Other benefits related to the consumption of fish oil include a healthier circulatory system and a healthier heart. It seems that fish oil is also capable of removing some of the bad cholesterol in the human body, but only if taken in the prescribed amounts, and only when the person leads a healthier lifestyle from thereon.
As many people already know, Omega 3 is the component in fish oil that is responsible for helping the cardiovascular system. Taken alone, this compound is responsible in dissolving bad cholesterol and strengthening the heart tissue.
Fish oil & fat loss
We began by saying that there is potential in fish oil when it comes to burning fat. Recent studies point to a particular truth regarding this potential: while it is true that there is potential there, the potential is too small to be of immense benefit to professional body builders. One study, carried out in Iceland, resulted in a dismaying result: only 1 kilogram lost after 4 weeks of protein and fish oil rich diets. It seems that indeed, there is too little to bank on to make fish oil an integral part of a weight loss plan.
In the long term, you can expect little results if you rely solely on fish oil. But if you are already engaged in a healthy exercise regimen, then there should be little to stop you from losing that extra few pounds every now and then by sticking to lots of seafood. If you’re already a seafood lover, then the study stated above is indeed good news.
In the second part of the study, this time concluded in Australia, it was found that participants who were on a steady stream of fish oil and seafood were more active during exercise and more amenable to losing weight than those who weren’t. It seems that even though the fat burning capability of fish oil is limited, it helps the person gain that extra edge to be able to do more exercises, so the person would be able to lose weight.
Fish oil & your existing diet
As such, these studies should be taken in a positive light. But we will not pretend here that the studies themselves were perfectly carried out. In essence, the studies were basically flawed because not everyone has the same body type, and in the second study, little control was present in limiting what participants actually ate at home. There might be a chance that the extra energy was due to something else there are simply too many variables to make sure that everything would lead back simply to fish oil.
A safe way to go about it is to simply integrate more protein from fish to your existing diet. This way, you would really be after the protein, but you’re getting extra benefits from the new diet as well.
