First there was Captain America, then Superman, Spiderman, Batman and so on. And now we have Essential Fatty Acids. Not quite as catchy a name but, as we appear to be discovering more and more each day, apparently equally super-heroic.
First it was our heart. We learned that polyunsaturated Omega 6 fatty acids were good for heart health and so started the growth of "healthy spreads" such as Flora. Then we discovered Omega 3 fatty acids and how they helped our brain function. In a world defined by an ever growing ageing population, this was big news to millions of "golden oldies" worried their brains weren't going to keep up with their now healthy hearts.
But it didn't stop there. Essential fatty acids were also discovered to be good for reducing cholesterol, for our joints, our blood vessels and our skin. They have been heralded as good for our children's attention span as well as our grandparents' mind and memory. So it seems they really are up there with the likes of Wonder Woman and the Incredible Hulk.
But the most recent research suggests that they're not satisfied with just helping our brains, hearts, joints, skin and blood vessels. Now they want to help us procreate too.
A study led by Mohammad Reza Safarinejad at the Shahid Beheshti University in Tehran, Iran suggested that omega 3 and 6 levels were linked to the sperm count of the participants involved in the study. They measured levels of polyunsaturated fatty acids in the blood plasma and spermatozoa of 82 infertile men and 78 fertile men. The fertile men were found to have higher levels of all the essential fatty acids than the infertile group. Interestingly, ratios of omega 3 to 6 seemed to also be significant. The infertile men had much higher ratios of omega 6 to omega 3 fatty acids. This ratio was linked to both lower sperm count and lower sperm mobility.
This is the first study of its kind and the participant group was relatively small. Also, there were some limitations to the study as it didn't look at diet versus supplementing etc and all the participants were Iranian men. However, it is a very interesting study and with a significant number of men suffering from low sperm count it could turn out to be a very positive discovery.
Obviously more research is needed to confirm whether this link is important, but my gut feeling is that of course it is. Superman can fly around the world hundreds of times in just a few seconds. So keeping the population going must be a walk in the park for a Superhero like Omega 3.
Sam worked in the health and fitness industry for over 15 years and became more interested in the role diet and nutrition plays in people's health, so her studies took her in a more nutritional direction. She now works at a company who sell health products such as omega 3 supplement, as well as, health supplements. For more information please visit, totallynourish.com.
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