Are you forgetful? Would your family and friends say that you’d forget your head if it weren’t attached to your neck? Well, you’re not alone – and there are specific things you can do to help, such as leveraging the power of DHA.
The majority of your brain is made up of fat. For that reason, you need to supply your body and brain with healthy fats to keep things running like a well-oiled machine. That’s where supplements like fish oil and DHA come into play. What many people fail to realize is that healthy fats are crucial for many processes in your body to take place – such as hormone production and balance.
If you’re not a fan of eating fish, you may be missing out on some of the brain health benefits that come along with consuming healthy fats. When you look at fish and fish oil supplements, one aspect that is often discussed is the quality and quantity of DHA present in the product.
In this article, we will look at what DHA is and how it can help improve your brain health.
Disclaimer: You should never use any supplements without first consulting with your doctor to ensure there will be no interaction with any medications you may be on or cause a reaction due to health conditions or allergies.
What is DHA?
One of the most commonly used supplements out on the market today is fish oil. Those who don’t regularly consume fish oil throughout the week may find themselves deficient in healthy fats – especially if they also don’t consume nut butters, avocados, nuts, seeds, or cook with healthy oils like extra virgin olive oil, coconut oil, or macadamia nut oil.
Omega-3 fatty acids are unable to be manufactured by the body alone and therefore need to come from our diet or supplementation. Unfortunately, not many people focus on consuming fatty fish or healthy fats with their meals which can lead to some mental and cognitive issues over time.
DHA (or docosahexaenoic acid) is one of the healthy fatty acids present in fish oil. This specific fatty acid is known for its ability to help maintain and improve brain function and performance. A fatty acid such as DHA can also help regulate hormones in the body that, without, could cause some negative and adverse effects on both mental and physical health.
Regardless of your age, DHA has shown to be beneficial for the young, the old, and the sick.
If you want to learn more about fish oil and all of the benefits that can be experienced, check out our article titled, “Fish Oil 101: Key Health Benefits to Understand.”
3 Ways DHA Can Help Improve Brain Health
You don’t need to enjoy fish to get brain health benefits – that’s where useful supplements that include omega-3 fatty acids and DHA come into play. By supplementing with a high-quality fish oil supplement that contains DHA, you may see the three main benefits mentioned below.
1. Help Decrease Inflammation
Your system is constantly trying to reduce and battle inflammation. While inflammation in your body may not be life-threatening, inflammation that takes place in the brain can have deadly consequences if not prevented and controlled.
Inflammation in the brain can happen due to a lack of physical activity, age, poor circulation, heart failure, chronic stress levels, and respiratory issues.
Antioxidants do a great job of fighting free radicals to help prevent inflammation from taking place, but even that isn’t always enough. Healthy fats such as DHA can help manage inflammation in the brain and may prevent certain cognitive diseases and disorders.
DHA possesses natural anti-inflammatory properties that can specifically target the brain and help preserve brain health and functioning.
2. Support Brain Functioning
As mentioned in #1, stress, poor nutrition, and age all play a role in inflammation targeting the brain. All of these factors can negatively affect your overall brain functioning and performance.
While we can’t do anything about the aging process (Father Time does not take pity on anyone), we can improve all of those other aspects by making them a priority and specifically focusing on improving them.
However, you can take things one step further by adding a fish oil supplement to your nutrition plan and regimen to help increase your DHA levels. Research has found that those who consume omega-3 fatty acids were less likely to suffer from cognitive issues and diseases.
One study showed that healthy fatty acids such as DHA could help prevent cognitive decline.
Another aspect of brain health and functioning comes down to proper circulation. When blood flow is restricted to the brain, a whole host of issues can unfold. DHA has the ability to help improve blood flow and circulationby dilating the blood vessels. The better the blood flow, the easier it is for oxygenated blood and nutrients to fuel the brain.
3. May Boost Memory
A common issue that arises with age is memory loss. In addition, with age, American adults may be more at risk for cognitive disorders and diseases such as dementia and Alzheimer’s. Researchers have found that those who supplemented with DHA were better able to preserve memory as they age.
Another study also confirmed that DHA can improve memory function while also finding another benefit of being able to improve the ability to learn and support mental performance.
There have also been studies looking specifically at how DHA levels in the body help reduce the risk of Alzheimer’s and dementia. One such study has shown that individuals who possess higher levels of DHA were at a lower risk for memory loss and diseases that directly affect memory and recollection.
“Don’t Forget” Your DHA!
I’ll admit, that was a lousy attempt at a DHA and brain benefit joke. However, that being said, utilizing and throwing a fish oil and DHA supplement into your regimen can bring you many overall health benefits – more than just what can be experienced by the brain.
In fact, Simple Supplements Omega3 isn’t your ordinary fish oil supplement – it’s BETTER! In addition to all of the health benefits you can experience by adding a fish oil and DHA supplement into your regimen, Simple Supplements Omega3 also contains two powerful ingredients – Coenzyme Q10 and Astaxanthin.
Coenzyme Q10 can help boost exercise performance, improve brain health, and support healthy skin. Then you have the added benefit of Astaxanthin which can help fight free radicals thanks to its natural antioxidant properties, elevate exercise performance, support heart health, minimize joint pain, and improve skin health.
Simple Supplements Omega3 is an all-in-one powerhouse of a supplement that only needs to be taken once a day. And unlike my poor comedic skills earlier, this is no joke. Try Simple Supplements Omega3 for yourself and feel the difference!
