The Importance of Omega-3 Fatty Acids
Omega-3s are crucial to every cell wall in your body and create the energy needed for your immune system, brain, heart, and lungs to work correctly. They are found in certain foods and can be taken as a supplement. Omega-3 fatty acids or essential fatty acids are a type of fat that cannot be made in the body. Fish is the best source of omega-3 fatty acids, but you can also find plant-based sources. Research has shown that omega-3s and other types of omegas are crucial to overall health, including supporting heart, brain, and mood functions.
Why are Omegas essential to overall health?
Our bodies make many different types of fats it needs from other fats, but we cannot make omega-3 fatty acids. We cannot make these essential fats in our body – we must get them from our food. Omega-3 fats are crucial to our cell membranes all over our body and are vital to the function of cell receptors in those membranes. Omega-3s provide the “starting point for making hormones that regulate blood clotting, contraction, inflammation, and relaxation of artery walls. They also bind to receptors in cells to regulate genetic function.”
Types of Omegas
EPA
EPA, short for eicosapentaenoic acid, is an omega-3 fatty acid. It is found in fish, including cod liver, mackerel, herring, halibut, and tuna. It is usually combined with DHA in supplements. EPA can help prevent blood from clotting too quickly and is used for the following:
- Depression
- Rheumatoid arthritis
- Menopause
- Menstrual pain
- Raynaud syndrome
- Lupus
- Heart disease includes high triglycerides (fats in the blood), high blood pressure, and inflammation
Warning
“Women who are pregnant or planning to become pregnant should avoid Atlantic mackerel, shark, swordfish, and tilefish, and eat less than six oz. of white albacore tuna per week. These fish tend to be higher in mercury.”
DHA
Docosahexaenoic acid, or DHA, is a type of omega-3 fat. DHA is found in oily fish like anchovies and salmon. It is recommended that DHA be taken combined with EPA. Studies have shown that DHA, along with other omega-3s like EPA, for heart health. DHA helps with the following:
- Reduces heart disease risk
- Reduces inflammation
- May improve ADHD
- Reduces the risk of early preterm births
- Helps with muscle recovery after exercise
- Lowers blood pressure
ALA
ALA, also known as alpha-linolenic acid, is found mainly in plant foods and precursors of EPA and DHA. This is the most common omega-3 fatty acid in many diets. The conversion process of ALA to EPA or DHA is minute in humans and is best sourced from foods and supplements. Foods rich in ALA include soybeans, kale, spinach, walnuts, chia, flax, hemp, flaxseed oil, and canola oil. ALA helps support: heart health and brain health.
Other omega-3 fatty acids include
- hexadecatrienoic acid (HTA)
- stearidonic acid (SDA)
- eicosatrienoic acid (ETE)
- eicosatetraenoic acid (ETA)
- heneicosapentaenoic acid (HPA)
- docosapentaenoic acid (DPA)
- tetracosapentaenoic acid
- tetracosahexaenoic acid
Omega 6
We get most of our omega-6 fats from vegetable oils. Omega-6 fats help lower harmful LDL cholesterol and boost protective HDL. Omega-6 fats are found in sunflower oil, safflower oil, corn oil, soybean oil, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, almonds, cashews, and walnuts.
Omega 9
Omega-9 fatty acids are monounsaturated and are produced by the body. Oleic acid is the most common omega-9 fatty acid. Foods high in omega-9 fats include nuts, seeds, seed oils, and vegetable oils.
Omega 3-6-9
Omega fatty acid supplements that include omega-3, omega-6, and omega-9, also known as omega 3-6-9, are taken in a 2 to 1 to 1 proportion.
Foods rich in omega-3
- Mackerel
- Salmon
- Seabass
- Sardines
- Oysters
- Shrimp
- Trout
- Seaweed
- Algae
- Chia seeds
- Hemp seeds
- Flaxseeds
- Edamame
- Walnuts
- Kidney beans
- Soybean oil
Omega-3 Supplements
Some people that prefer not to eat fish can obtain their omega-3s with supplements. There are several types of omega supplements, including:
- Fish oil
- Cod liver oil
- Krill oil
- Algae oil
- ALA supplements including flaxseed, chia seed, and hemp seed
Omega-3 and heart health
Omega-3 is an unsaturated fatty acid that has been shown to reduce inflammation throughout the body and has the following heart health benefits:
- Decrease triglycerides
- Reduces blood pressure slightly
- Reduce blood clotting
- Decrease your risk of stroke
- Reduces heart failure risk
- Reduces irregular heartbeat
It is recommended that eating at least two servings of omega-3 rich fish per week can help support heart health.
Omega-3 and brain health
The brain contains 60% fat, and the brain needs omega-3s to function and develop. The omega-3s DHA and EPA are crucial to brain health; DHA is the most abundant fatty acid in the brain. DHA is essential in nerve cell structure and function, and EPA is vital to regulating cellular inflammation. DHA and EPA are responsible for how the brain develops, functions, and is preserved as we age.
When we don’t get enough omega-3s in our diet, it can impair brain performance and disease. Omega-3s improve neurological conditions, including bipolar disorder, anxiety, ADHD, Alzheimer’s disease, dementia, and depression.
Omega fatty acids help the brain and our nervous system in the following ways:
- Preserves cell membrane function
- It helps communication between neurons
- Assists with the synthesis and process of neurotransmitters
- Supports normal brain blood flow
- It helps with the growth of brain tissue
- Supports cognitive function
- Helps with memory
Omega-3 and mood
As with the brain, the omega-3 fatty acids, DHA, and EPA in combination have been shown to help with mood disorders and are a promising natural treatment for supporting mental health. “Research suggests depression rates have risen as our intake of omega-3s has fallen over the past 50 to 100 years,” says omega-3 expert Gretchen Vannice, MS, RD, an independent nutrition research consultant based in Portland, Ore., and the author of The Omega-3 Handbook.
DHA concentrates on the brain’s gray matter and the eyes’ retinas, which are fluid and flexible molecules. This essential fatty acid becomes part of the brain cell membrane and works at synapses.
EPA helps reduce the inflammatory processes in the brain and helps balance the metabolic pathways.
Studies show that omega-3 fatty acid deficiency may contribute to mood disorders and be an essential part of treatment approaches. However, more studies are needed. Research is based on the correlation between fish consumption and depression – particularly in countries where seasonal affective disorder is a higher risk due to less winter sunlight. The consumption of fish is higher, such as in Iceland and Finland. Those who ate less fish were more likely to have depression than those who ate more fish – the high consumption rate was about 225 pounds per person per year. In Japan, where the average person consumes about 147 pounds per year, the seasonal affective disorder was also low.
Jemile earned a degree in Food Studies and Writing and has worked for almost 23 years in the medical and health industries. She has been a digital marketing consultant for Acupuncture Atlanta since 2011 as the social media manager and content manager. Writing has been a childhood dream for Jemile and writing daily for clients in the health, wellness, food, and art industries have been phenomenal. Jemile is originally from Brooklyn, NY, and lives in the Hudson Valley, NY. She lives with her husband, two daughters, her dog, and two fish. You can contact Jemile via Linkedin, her mom blog, or her website, lunaroseconsulting.com
