Balancing Omega-3 and Omega-6?

[Guest guest]

Balancing Omega-3 and Omega-6?

I don't understand the difference between omega-3 and omega-6 fatty

acids. I know we're supposed to increase consumption of the omega-

3s. What about omega-6?

A Answer (Published 2/22/2007)

 

Omega-3 and omega-6 are types of essential fatty acids – meaning we

cannot make them on our own and have to obtain them from our diet.

Both are polyunsaturated fatty acids that differ from each other in

their chemical structure.

 

In modern diets, there are few sources of omega-3 fatty acids,

mainly the fat of cold water fish such as salmon, sardines, herring,

mackerel, black cod, and bluefish. There are two critical omega-3

fatty acids, (eicosapentaenoic acid, called EPA and docosahexaenoic

or DHA), that the body needs.

 

Vegetarian sources, such as walnuts and flaxseeds contain a

precursor omega-3 (alpha-linolenic acid called ALA) that the body

must convert to EPA and DHA. EPA and DHA are the building blocks for

hormones that control immune function, blood clotting, and cell

growth as well as components of cell membranes.

 

 

By contrast, sources of omega-6 fatty acids are numerous in modern

diets. Refined vegetable oils, such as soy oil, are used in most of

the snack foods, cookies, crackers, and sweets in the American diet

as well as in fast food. Soybean oil alone is now so ubiquitous in

fast foods and processed foods that an astounding 20 percent of the

calories in the American diet are estimated to come from this single

source.

 

The body also constructs hormones from omega 6 fatty acids. In

general, hormones derived from the two classes of essential fatty

acids have opposite effects.

 

Those from omega-6 fatty acids tend to increase inflammation (an

important component of the immune response), blood clotting, and

cell proliferation, while those from omega-3 fatty acids decrease

those functions. Both families of hormones must be in balance to

maintain optimum health.

 

 

Many nutrition experts believe that before we relied so heavily on

processed foods, humans consumed omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids in

roughly equal amounts. But to our great detriment, most North

Americans and Europeans now get far too much of the omega-6s and not

enough of the omega-3s.

 

This dietary imbalance may explain the rise of such diseases as

asthma, coronary heart disease, many forms of cancer, autoimmunity

and neurodegenerative diseases, all of which are believed to stem

from inflammation in the body.

 

The imbalance between omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids may also

contribute to obesity, depression, dyslexia, hyperactivity and even

a tendency toward violence. Bringing the fats into proper proportion

may actually relieve those conditions, according to Joseph Hibbeln,

M.D., a psychiatrist at the National Institutes of Health, and

perhaps the world's leading authority on the relationship between

fat consumption and mental health.

 

At the 2006 Nutrition and Health Conference sponsored by the

University of Arizona's College of Medicine and Columbia

University's College of Physicians and Surgeons, Dr. Hibbeln cited a

study showing that violence in a British prison dropped by 37

percent after omega-3 oils and vitamins were added to the prisoners'

diets.

 

If you follow my Anti-Inflammatory Diet, you should get a healthy

ratio of these fatty acids. In general, however, you can cut down on

omega-6 levels by reducing consumption of processed and fast foods

and polyunsaturated vegetable oils (corn, sunflower, safflower, soy,

and cottonseed, for example). At home, use extra virgin olive oil

for cooking and in salad dressings. Eat more oily fish or take fish

oil supplements, walnuts, flax seeds, and organic eggs. Your body

and mind will thank you.

 

Andrew Weil, M.D.

www.drweil.com