Take DHA-rich fish oil to improve your gut health and improve your brain function. Research shows that the DHA-rich omega-3 fatty acid that is found in fish oil will kill dangerous bacteria that infects the gut. Anyone whose taken my BioSignature course knows that an unhealthy gut will lead to poor brain function.
Heliobactor pylori is an unhealthy bacteria that is extremely common, infecting the gastrointestinal tract, and causing ulcers and stomach cancer. It normally requires an intense antibiotic regimen to cure, but new drug-resistant strains of H. pylori have developed, making new treatment strategies necessary. Plus, there are severe side effects from antibiotictreatment, people tend to comply poorly, the medication is expensive, and reinfection is common.
A new study shows that a large DHA-rich fish oil supplement can help cure H. pylori, while improving overall gut health. The study tested the effect of standard antibiotic therapy, DHA therapy, or a combination of the two on H. pylori infection in the gut of mice. Results showed that the combination therapy worked best, completing eradicating the bacteria The antibiotic therapy was more effective than the DHA, but just taking the DHA cured 50 percent of the mice of H. pylori.
Researchers suggest that a large DHA dose should be taken all the time because of its antibacterial properties. That way, your body will be able to kill all pathogenic bacteria before they become a problem. Simply taking DHA may not be sufficient if you already have a problem with H. pylori, but it can support the effectiveness of antibiotic therapy. Additionally, in this study, results showed that the mice treated with just DHA had less inflammation in the gut and stomach than a control group that also had H. pylori, indicating that DHA can protect gut health, while helping eradicate dangerous bacteria.
Taking DHA will also improve brain function because having bacterial pathogens in the gut will impede brain function by inhibiting the healthy production of chemical transmitters. DHA is also a natural component of the human brain and it helps maintain the structural integrity of cell membranes. If you don’t have enough DHA in your brain, cognitive function and memory will be poor, while the whole nervous system will not be able to perform at its best.
This study doesn’t suggest a DHA dose, but other studies have shown cognitive benefits from 3 grams a day. This way you’ll ensure increased blood flow to the brain and support the antibiotic effect in the gut. It wouldn’t be a bad thing to take larger quantities—I’ve seen the most dramatic fat loss on a high fish oil dose of 1 to 1.5 grams of fish oil per percent of body fat per day.
Reference
Correia, M., Michel, V., et al. Docosahexaenoic Acid Inhibits Helicobacter Pylori Growth In Vitro and Mice Gastric Mucosa Colonization. PLOS One. 2012. 7(4), e35072.
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