Dear Gayle,

Omega-3 essential fatty acids are a family of polyunsaturated fatty acids that, like vitamins, must be obtained from diet. Since they were identified in the 1970s, thousands of studies and clinical trials have shown that omega-3 is essential to good health, can protect against disease, and can treat illness. Oil-rich fish (mackerel, herring, sardine, pilchard, salmon) and supplements such as fish oil and cod liver oil, are the richest and most readily available sources.

Your chiropractor is right to recommend a supplement. It is estimated that 90% of Americans are deficient in omega-3 because of our reliance on processed foods, meat, and dairy products instead of oily fish and nuts and seeds that provide vegetable-source omega-3.

How omega-3 helps prevent and treat various disorders appears to vary, however, many studies show omega-3 can help:

• improve heart and vascular health
• reduce hypertension
• improve rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, Raynaud's disease, and other autoimmune diseases
• support memory
• aid vision
• improve skin tone
• reduce joint pain and inflammation
• relieve PMS and menopause symptoms
• aid in cancer prevention and cancer support
• support weight loss

And when it comes to supplements, our MaxEPA with twice the omega-3 of other fish oil supplements, is one of the best.

Educating women on health care options is the personal mission of Marla Ahlgrimm, R.Ph., founder and CEO of Women's Health America. If you have a women's health care question, send it to Marla at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it . If your question is chosen for publication, we'll send you a free sample of one of our latest health care innovations.