The Effects of Fatty Acids
Fatty acids are a great addition to your pet’s diet. These chains of carbon molecules link together in order to form single or double bonds. The location of these bonds determines if the fatty acid is an Omega 3 or an Omega 6 acid. In either case, the fatty acids are beneficial to your pet, but Omega 3 is the one you need to help fight the side effects of arthritis because it reduces inflammation. Omega 6, however, can actually promote inflammation. Omega 3 fatty acids are also helpful to pets with flea allergies, kidney disease, asthma, and heart disease.
Getting More Omega 3 in Your Pet’s Diet
To get the best results from Omega 3 fatty acids, you need to keep a balance of Omega 3 and Omega 6 in your pet’s diet. But, your pet most likely already gets more than its share of Omega 6 because most pet foods and treats have a great deal of Omega 6 in them already.
One sure method for including Omega 3 in your pet’s diet is to give it fish oil supplements. Be sure to never use cod liver oil because this will actually cause your pet’s body to store excess fat in the liver. In addition, cod liver oil has large amounts of vitamins A and D. Having too much of these vitamins stored in the liver is unhealthy. Therefore, choose whole body fish oil instead. Foods containing high levels of Omega 3 fatty acids include hemp, walnuts, flax, and fish.
The Pay Off
As soon as you begin adding Omega 3 fatty acids to your pet’s diet, it will begin experiencing the benefits. You probably won’t actually notice improvement, however, until about three or four months later because the changes take place from the inside out. Besides a better ability to move around, your pet will also begin having a healthier coat and skin. Once you see these obvious signs of improvement on the outside, you can be sure your pet is feeling healthier on the inside.
