The omega-3 long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (EPA and DHA) come from the marine environment and are essential nutrients for all vertebrates’ development, metabolism and physiology. Fish oil is the natural source of EPA and DHA: up to one third of fish oil is EPA and DHA.

There are other types of omega-3s: the short-chain fatty acids, which don’t have the same properties and therefore don’t provide the same nutritional and health benefits. 

Benefits of EPA & DHA

The benefits of consuming EPA and DHA are well known and include:

• Heart health – Omega-3s have been shown to help maintain healthy blood pressure and healthy triglyceride levels and may reduce Coronary Heart Disease (CHD).
• Neurological Health - DHA is the most abundant omega-3 fatty acid in the brain and needs to replenish the supply to function optimally.
• Eye health - DHA is found in large amounts in the retina of the eye, the part of the eye responsible for seeing under different lighting conditions.
• Prenatal health - Omega-3s play an important role in brain and eye development for a growing baby, both during pregnancy and in the first months of life.

Fishmeal and fish oil carry with them several decades of data and information about raw material supply, production, nutrient profile and other detail. With comparatively high protein levels (usually 68-72%), high digestibility (often 90% or more), perfectly profiled amino acid and fatty acid balances, and a range of micronutrients including vitamins and minerals that are essential for heath and growth, fishmeal and fish oil are benchmark aquafeed ingredients against which the performance of other ingredients are measured. They are a known factor in the feed industry, which is not the case with other raw materials.

Learn more about EPA and DHA in fish oil, with Prof Doug Tocher, from the University of Stirling, UK

Source: Omega-3 health benefits - https://alwaysomega3s.com/