I’m writing about omega-3 fatty acids today because, despite all you hear in passing about them, does anyone know exactly how they can help? I myself didn’t realize their full impact on my body until I went off my fish oil regimen for three weeks recently. I was taking three trips in quick succession, and since I take my omegas in oil form, I couldn’t easily bring it with me. (I didn’t think that a broken bottle of fish oil would make my suitcase innards smell or feel all that great—maybe that’s just me.)

Anyhow, I wasn’t noticing any changes in my body at first, and it even crossed my mind that I could stop with the oil entirely once I got home. After a number of days though, things changed. My forty-eight-year-old knees felt sore after running, and though the soreness abated by the following day, it didn’t really go away. My hips felt generally achy and uncomfortable. And my skin, hair, and nails were really dry. I chalked these changes up to the cold mountain air, but then I found myself in the tropics feeling no different. What was up?

The day I finally got home for good, I resumed my omega regimen. In my case—and this isn’t a commercial!—I take 1–2 tsp of Carlson’s lemon-flavored fish oil daily, which I keep in the fridge. It actually does not taste bad—as nauseating as the notion of fishy, lemony oil by the spoonful sounds. It took close to a week to start noticing improvement, but, sure enough, it came. My hips felt comfortable again, as did my knees, even after running and spinning. My skin and hair improved. I just felt better, more youthful, and more like myself. [Read more…]