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PULEVA Omega 3

Some 10 years ago, PULEVA launched PULEVA Omega 3 onto the market, the first product produced from skimmed milk enriched with Omega 3 and oleic fatty acids.

For millions of Spaniards, PULEVA Omega 3 has become a natural way of preventing high levels of cholesterol and triglycerides, thereby balancing the excessive consumption of fats from current diets and maintaining a healthy heart and healthy arteries.

 PULEVA Omega 3 is a dairy based food substance of daily consumption, which adapts naturally and healthily to our new lifestyle; it is a combination of the nutrients that are to be found in the Mediterranean diet (Omega 3 fatty acids, oleic acids, vitamins and minerals).

WHAT ARE OMEGA 3 FATTY ACIDS?

Omega 3 fatty acids are polyunsaturated fats that we find mainly in oily fish.  They are also known as essential or indispensable fatty acids, because our organism cannot manufacture them on its own and yet they are indispensable for its correct functioning and for the prevention of certain illnesses.  With current trends and the progressive abandonment of the Mediterranean diet we are consuming less of this type of fats, which is why it is necessary to take them in enriched food substances, such as milk.

 A food substance rich Omega 3 EPA/DHA fatty acids can help us maintain a healthy heart, free of excessive cholesterol.  They contribute towards the regulation of blood pressure by increasing the elasticity of the arteries and they act within our organism as antithrombotic mechanisms preventing cardiovascular diseases and reducing triglycerides.

 In terms of their function, there are two types of Omega 3 fatty acids:

-          Omega 3 DHA: present in maternal milk and critical (in the early stages) for the development of the cognitive system and visual function.

-          Omega 3 EPA: helps to preserve the health of your cardiovascular system.

 Dr. Pedro Mata, in the White Book of Omega 3’s (Editorial Médica Panamericana, 2004) confirms that with a Mediterranean diet that includes a high Omega 3 content, up to 70% of cardiovascular diseases could be prevented.

THE BENEFITS OF OMEGA 3

OLEIC ACID

Oleic acid is a type of monounsaturated fat typical of vegetable oils such as olive oil. It acts beneficially upon blood vessels reducing the risk of suffering from cardiovascular diseases.

Reduces Blood Pressure
In recent years studies have shown the possible role of antioxidant substances present in unsaponifiable residue in the development of arteriosclerosis.

Olive oil presents a differential effect compared to other vegetable oils rich in polyunsaturated or monounsaturated fatty acids, being very similar to the performance mechanism of omega 3 acids.  They all produce a reduction in LDL Cholesterol (bad cholesterol), while only olive oil prevents the reduction of the HDL Cholesterol (good cholesterol).  However, it is only virgin olive oil that inhibits the oxidation of the LDL thanks to its high content in antioxidant compounds, particularly tocopherols and phenolic compounds.

Finally, an immune-regulating effect on arteriosclerosis has been observed in virgin olive oil, capable of modulating the inflammation processes on artery walls by inhibiting the production of cytokines, the adhesion of leucocytes on the arterial wall and platelet aggregation.  

Olive oil, through oleic acid and its antioxidant components, affects different processes related to the apparition of a thrombosis.  Oleic acid reduces blood pressure, protects the endothelium and diminishes the inflammatory process.

With regard to the phenomena of platelet aggregation (which favours the apparition of a blood clot), olive oil reduces it: it increases the concentration thresholds for compounds that induce said aggregation such as collagen and adrenaline; reduces the liberation of thromboxane A2 (key to platelet aggregation); and reduces the levels of Factor von Willebrand (Factor vW) which keeps the platelets attached to the vessel wall.  

Similarly, it intervenes in the coagulation process.  It reduces procoagulant factor VII, the Tissue Factor Pathway Inhibitor (TFPI), a substance fundamental to the modulation of the Tissue Factor effect (TF), principal prothrombotic component of broken plaque.

FOLIC ACID

Folic acid reduces damage to artery walls.

Folic acid could diminish the risk of cardiac disease by preventing damage to the internal artery walls, according to British researchers.

Folic acid from Vitamin B can reduce homocysteine, a substance found in the blood which has been related to cardiac disease.  The study concludes that too much homocysteine, which normally forms when protein collapses, could provoke oxidisation damage in the endothelium.

 The study included 90 patients between the ages of 46 and 79.  After 12 weeks of study,  homocysteine levels in the blood were significantly lower in the patients who took folic acid.