How can omega-3 fats help teens lose weight?

Your body can synthesize its own fats from the carbohydrates you eat, as it needs to. The only fats it cannot make are certain unsaturated ones, which you have to get from food. These are called essential fatty acids (EFA) or omega fats. EFAs are sometimes classified as omega-3s or omega-6s.

Omega fats specifically work in two ways to help you lose weight. First, they help your body unlock stored body fat so it can be burned for energy. (This is done through a process that involves balancing your body's ratio of insulin, the chemical signal that tells your body to store fat, and glucagon, the chemical signal that tells your body to burn fat.) And second, omega fats boost your body's metabolism, increasing the number of calories you burn daily. Keep in mind that overdoing any kind of fat, good or bad, is a silly move if you are trying to lose weight. But don't throw the baby out with the bathwater -- the good fats need to stay in your diet.