Omega-3 Fatty Acids — What Exactly Are They Good For When It Comes To The Brain?

You can find omega-3 fatty acids in all sorts of food, including; salmon and other fatty fish, nuts, beans, seeds and oil.

So, what does this compound do for the brain?

Surrounding your nerve cells is a layer of fatty tissue that aids in the conduction and transmission of the electrical impulses used to communicate information throughout your brain and the remainder of your nervous system.

This layer of fatty tissue is referred to as myelin, and as a metaphor, it can be compared with the insulative rubber that surrounds the electrical cords you use to power things in your home. With healthy myelin, we get a healthy flow of electricity in the brain and nervous system.

But, let me provide you with some scale as to how important the myelin’s health can be in our thoughts, emotions and behaviours. Affective neuroscientists (neuroscientists who study our brains’ emotional life) have found that traits like resilience and level of optimism have a basis in the brain.

Research suggests that the white matter in the brain, the better. This is because the amount of white matter can determine how quickly and effectively one can bounce back from adversity and predict one’s ability to experience and sustain positive emotion.

Myelin is a crucial component of the white matter in the brain. The consumption of Omega-3 fatty acids helps maintain the myelin’s health that surrounds your nerve cells, thus creating a healthy level of white matter in the brain to aid in things like your resilience and your outlook on life.