Omega 3 Research Paper

Athletes today are bigger, faster, and stronger than they have ever been before. They are doing things that were once thought of being impossible. It is safe to say that the competition among athletes is at an all-time high. In order to keep up with the high caliber of athletes in today’s time, athletes are looking for ways to improve themselves. In the pursuit of excellence, many athletes take supplements to help improve their performance. The benefits an athlete looks for in a supplement include increasing power, speed, endurance, or strength. Omega-3 Fatty acids taken in the form of fish oil can be viewed as a dietary supplement that has the ability to benefit athletes in some of those ways. The consumption of Omega-3 fatty acids in western culture is on the rise, especially in elite athletes, due to the increasing number of studies that support its health claims. Omega-3 and Omega-6 fatty acids are used in a variety of ways in our bodies. Consuming equal numbers of these acids is very important because humans cannot produce

these essential acids. Major diet changes in Western culture have taken place in the past 10,000 years. The ratio of Omega-3 to Omega-6 in our bodies used to be 1:1 or 2:1. Even though there has been diet changes, the genetic profile of humans has changed very little, meaning humans still need a 1:1 or 2:1 ratio between the fatty acids. A Western diet provides a ratio that ranges from 1:10 to 1:20 favoring Omega-6 (Hadadi, 2014). Excess consumption of Omega-6 can promote dangerous inflammation that can cause several life threatening conditions such as Coronary Heart Disease, a major killer in today’s culture (Hadadi, 2014). In the 1970’s a Danish epidemiologist was the first to make connections between consumption of Omega-3’s and cardiovascular disease. He observed that Eskimos in Greenland who consume large amounts of fish, seal, and whale blubber do not suffer from heart attacks, but Eskimos who left Greenland and do not share the same diet, suffer from heart attacks (Buckely, 2014). From this discovery, Omega-3 supplementation has been growing in popularity.
Omega-3 and Omega-6 fatty acids have to be discussed together rather than separate from each other. These fatty acids are said to be essential because humans cannot make them, therefore they need to be obtained by diet or supplementation. Fatty acids are long chains or carbon, classified as saturated, monosaturated, or polyunsaturated (Hadadi, 2014). Omega-3 and Omega-6 fall into the polyunsaturated category. When Omega-3 fatty acids metabolite they have anti-inflammatory properties, while Omega-6 fatty acids metabolites become pro-inflammatory (Jouris, 2011). The health benefits from the anti-inflammatory properties of Omega-3’s are hidden by the excess amounts of Omega-6’s. Both fatty acids compete for the same enzymes and with high levels of Omega-6, the omega-6 fatty acids take the place of the Omega-3 increases the inflammation in tissues (Andrade, 2007). In a study by the Center of Genetics, Nutrition and Health, researcher Arternis Simopoulos determined that “training leads to an increase in super-oxides radicals in the lipid bilayers of muscles mitochondria and trauma to the muscles.” Trauma inflicted to the muscles creates inflammation that is only made worse by high levels of Omega-6 fatty acids. In order to reduce the inflammation a ratio closer to 1:1 or 2:1 should be achieved. However, before people, especially athletes, decide to start a supplement the health claims and research to back up these claims have to be examined.
Muscle growth is very important to athletes because more muscle mass can be tied to more power, strength, and speed. Omega-3 supplementation claims to increase protein synthesis which can increase muscle growth (Hadadi, 2014). For muscle to grow there needs to be proper strength building activities while having proper nutrition. Both parts are equally important in the production of muscle. Protein is a raw material that supplies the body with amino acids used to repair and build muscle (Dideriksen, 2013). Anyone that has gone to gym has a high chance of seeing someone finish their workout and immediately consume a protein shake. Protein powders are a very popular supplement that has taken grip of the sports industry. Omega-3’s in the form of fish oil is not as well-known as protein powder but claims to play just as an important role by improving the anabolic effect of exercise. Scientific literature has shown that omega-3 fatty acids combined with an anabolic stimulus like exercise can improve protein metabolism (Dideriksen, 2013). Omega-3 fatty acids may enhance insulin sensitive aspects of protein metabolism (Smith, 2011). In a study on the effects of fish oil supplementation on protein synthesis, 16 healthy older adults took fish oil for eight weeks. The fish oil increased muscle protein synthesis and an increase of muscle cell size (Smith, 2011). Similar results were achieved in a study that observed nine subjects for eight weeks after starting a fish oil supplement. According to the study the subjects had an increase in muscle protein synthesis in response to an insulin and amino acid infusion as well as an increase in muscle protein concentration (Smith, 2012). There is no overnight magic pill to get more muscle mass, but supplementation of Omega-3 fatty acids in addition to strength training may help improve muscle gains by improving protein metabolism.
Increased protein synthesis sounds amazing to athletes, but only if that translates to strength gains. In a study of 3,000 adults revealed that consumption of fish oils was strongly associated with increased grip strength measured by a handheld device (Robinson, 2008). This provides good evidence that omega-3 has a direct influence on strength. Muscle strength gained with the help of fish oil supplements was evident in a 90 day study of 45 women divided into three groups. All women showed improvements in strength but the two groups that were given omega-3 fatty acids showed a bigger increase in strength in addition to improvements in muscle activation (Rodacki, 2012). These studies back up the claim that supplementation can help improve muscle strength and physical performance.
Training is a crucial part athletics and is the time for athletes to improve their game. Muscle soreness and stiffness is something that can cause athletes to take time off of training in order to recover. Omega-3 fatty acids has claimed that supplementation will alleviate these symptoms (Schoefield, 2012). Athletes are commonly prescribed nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs like ibuprofen to help the exercise induced muscle damage causd by a hard day of training (Buckely, 2014). Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs also called NSAIDs inhibit the conversion of arachidonic acid of cell membranes and reduce the production of pro-inflammatory molecules (Jouris, 2011). By decreasing the inflammation, the individual can feel the pain-reducing effects. With the anti-inflammatory properties of Omega-3 fatty acids, they might offer an alternative or additional strategy to help with muscle damage and recovery time. A one month double-blind study showed that fish oil decreased the exercise induced inflammatory markers in 45 untrained men (Gomez, 2005). In this study, low doses of fish oil (300mg) showed to reduce inflammation (Gomez, 2005). In addition to inflammation, it has been shown to reduce exercise induced soreness. For example soreness from bicep curls decreased by 15% in a study where 11 healthy individuals took 2000 mg of EPA and 1000mg of DHA for two weeks (Jouris, 2011). These studies support the claim made by Omega-3 supplements.
It is a common idea that exercise helps boost the immune system. Athletes are susceptible to exercise induced stress when they train too intensely and don’t get the proper nutrition. The creation of free radicals can result from exercise induced stress (Venkatraman, 2002). Free radicals are molecules, usually oxygen, that have lost an electron making them very unstable. They can cause damage to the cell membranes leading to dysfunction, mutation, and cancers. Omega-3 have claimed to offer a solution by helping modify bloods antioxidant status after exercise, which will protect against free radical damage from exercise (Weins, 2014). For example, supplementation with omega-3 fatty acids increased the catalase antioxidant enzyme activity in response to exercise one hour after activity (Poprezeski, 2009). I study reported improvements in exercise associated immune responses in competitive swimmer over a six week period when given fish oil (Andrade, 2007). Overall these results support the claim that omega-3 fatty acids may help improve the body’s reaction to exercise induced stress.
Omega-3 fatty acids originally got attention for its effect on cardiovascular disease, but now these similar effects can be beneficial for athletes.

Omega-3’s have a positive impact on the cardiovascular system with regards to resting heart rate, heart rate recovery, exercise capacity, and blood vessel dilation (O’Keefe, 2006). Omega-3 fatty acids have been proven effective in increasing blood flow, lowered heart rate, and more effective whole body oxygen consumption (O’Keefe, 2006). These results stemmed from a study of 16 well trained male cyclists given omega-3 supplements. New claims about improvements in lung function have recently surfaced. Exercise strengthens the lung and with the help of fish oil, it is supposed to improve results. For example, a 12 week study with 40 male wrestlers performing very high intensity training had improved scores on lung functioning tests when given a very low dose of fish oil (Taribian,

2010).
There have been major dietary changed in our culture in the past 10,000 years. Cardiovascular disease is on the rise in Western society and most likely has touched almost every family in the United States in some way. After my research I do believe there is a connection between the ratio between Omega-6 and Omega-3 fatty acids and heart disease. As soon as a new supplement appears in the market, people immediate think they need to take it. Athletes can become very guilty of this. They are so focused on improving and getting better they fall for the “too good to be true” claims of supplements. A well designed nutrition plan based on whole foods can supply the right amount of nutrients and energy for optimal performance. Supplements are not necessary if an athlete consumed the appropriate food. I think there needs to be more research to compare the effects of improving diet versus supplementing omega-3 fatty acids in the form of fish oil. Omega-3 fatty acids can boost overall health and reduce inflammation I think that there have been numerous studies to back that Omega-3 fatty acids offer performance enhancing benefits that can help all athletes. Omega-3’s can help increase protein synthesis that may aid in muscle growth and strength, decreased the amount of exercise induced soreness, and boost the immune system. Through my research unless taken in extremely high dosages, there have been very few to no side effects to supplementing Omega-3 fatty acids. It may be safer than eating more fish because of the risk of fish contamination. There is concrete evidence that our diets are lacking Omega-3’s and there are big benefits with little risk to supplementing Omega-3. Athletes are always looking for ways to improve their game. I think taking fish oil can be a safe way to help get your game to the next level.