Let's hear it for curvy hips + thighs!

Well this is about the best news I've heard in a while: love your thighs! Apparently girls start storing omega-3 fatty acids in their hips and thighs once puberty hits, according to a recent study. Psychology Today wrote about the study, explaining that those fatty acids compose much of the human brain, and is important during the third trimester of pregnancy, when your baby's brain is rapidly developing. If you're nursing, baby continues to draw from these essential fatty acid stores, and your own lower body weight loss continues until the child stops breast-feeding.

Watch out for a thick waist though. While the study showed better cognitive ability in kids born to moms with curvy hips and thighs, waist fat apparently "increases brain-harming inflammation and is low in the fatty acids." Eek.

And here's one more tidbit about omega-3s. A different study, published in the journal Epidemiology, showed that pregnant women who ate less than three servings of seafood per week were more likely to be depressed, since omega-3s help boost your mood, too.

You may be wondering though, about all the fuss you've heard in the news (especially if you're pregnant) about mercury in fish. Mercury is a neurotoxin that can impair fetal brain development, so it's true that you need to watch your seafood intake a bit more closely in this case. Still, you can consume some low-mercury seafood in moderation, experts say. According to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, it is good for your health to eat seafood low in mercury, twice a week. These healthier choices include:
• salmon
• canned light tuna (bye-bye yummy albacore tuna!)
• shrimp
• catfish
• pollock

Now I know what I want for lunch today: grilled salmon over a spinach salad. Mmm!

Love,
Alisa, Sarah & the women of Blooma