What Omega 3 and Homework have in Common

If you have teenagers, then you likely also have homework problems. Even the best behaved kids occasionally “flake out” on their homework, failing to do it in a timely manner, turn it in to the appropriate teacher at the appropriate time or just plain bombing it. They make excellent and well-developed excuses about how they will never use this information in the real world, how it does not actually affect their grades or how homework really is a total waste of time. However, as a parent, when you get that note or that phone call, you know that ultimately, your message is going to be simple: You just have to do it.

So what does this have to do with fish oil and omega 3?

Well, there is the obvious connection that kids who have adequate amounts of omega 3 fatty acids in their systems do better in school, have better focus and tend to experience less school-related stress. However, that is not the only thing that omega 3 and homework have in common. In both cases, ultimately, you just have to “suck it up” and “do it,” whether “it” involves taking your omega 3 fatty acid supplement or finishing that geometry proof.

Neither homework nor dietary supplements are particularly exciting. In fact, thanks to their mundane natures, they are particularly objectionable to teens, who tend to avoid vitamins like the plague and homework like a similar contagion. Just remind your kids, though, as they are moaning about their daily dose, that like homework, fish oil prepares them for the future. It sets up their bodies to function effectively just as homework sets up their minds to be ready for new and more exciting information. And then, if they try the old “the dog ate my omega 3 supplement routine,” let them know you’re ready and willing to enforce the daily omega 3 rule.

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