[herpie]

Topic in construction

Q: What are omega-3 essential fatty acids (EFAs)?
A: That's a common name for several polyunsaturated fatty acids: ALA (alpha-linoleic acid), DHA (docosahexaenoic acid), DPA (docosapentaenoic acid) and EPA (eicosapentaenoic acid). They're called essential fatty acids, because they can't be synthesized by the human body, and must be supplied in form of food or supplements. In fact, some amount of some types of EFAs can be synthesized in human body, but it's not always enough.

Q: What are they good for?
A: Most of benefits are related to prevention of cardiovascular diseases. However, they were found to be beneficial in mental illnesses like schizophrenia and major depression. I must find more information, but currently I suck. This company has a current list of news about potential uses for omega-3 fatty acids (they get paid for testing omega-3 based supplements, so there *may* be some conflict issues).

Q: What are dietary sources of omega-3 fatty acids?
A: A decent table of omega-3 content in various foods can be found at the end of this document. Generally, cold water fish like tuna and salmon are rich in EPA and DHA, while flax seed is rich in alpha-linoleic acid.

Q: I'm a vegetarian/I don't eat fish. Can I get all EFAs from a vegetarian source?
A: Not quite. While alpha-linoleic acid (ALA) can be found in flax seed, the only source of EPA and DHA is fish. According to Nordic Naturals (a major seller of fish-oil-based supplements, keep that in mind): "The general consensus is that only about 15% of ALA converts to EPA, and it may not convert to DHA at all.". So, if you don't eat fish, you may use one of the many available fish oil supplements.

Q: What's all that mercury thing everyone is complaining about?
A: Some people are afraid of the mercury (a toxic heavy metal) that are supposedly present in some fish products. We don't know how much of it is hype or propaganda to protect national workforce and how much is true. Some brands of fish oil are advertised to contain no or little of mercury - they may be safer, as long as it's not just advertising babble. If you're afraid of mercury toxicity, you may use a selenium supplement (selenium counteracts some of mercury toxicity, according to these studies and reviews: 1 2  3)

Q: Are EFAs really beneficial for schizophrenia?
A: Seems they are. Results of some clinical trials (1 2, more later) indicated there may be a significant improvement in both positive and negative symptoms from addition of EFAs.

Q: Which brands of fish oil may be considered reliable?
A: An excerpt of report by Consumer Lab comparing different brands can be found here. Another report (by Canadian testing lab Nutrasource Diagnostics Inc) may be found here. Some CrazyTalk moderators have good experience with Nordic Naturals and TwinLab brands, but - as you can see - there's a plenty to choose from.

Q: I can't stand that horrible smell after taking the supplement!
A: Try different brand or pharmacy. The strong fish odour may be caused by rancid (spoilt) oil.

More to come!

This post has been edited by herpie: 24 May 2005 - 06:01 AM

[Penny Century]

Q:Why do pretty much all Westerners need to supplement their diet with Omega 3 fatty acids?
A: from Human requirement for N-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids
There are two types of fatty acids that we are concerned with here.  Omega 6s and Omega 3s.  Omega 6 fatty acids are in pretty much everything we eat, esp. in processed foods. Back in the day, the human diet had a ratio of omega 6 to omega 3 around 1:1 or 2:1.  Today the ration is about 10 : 1 or 25:1.

The diet we eat today is not the diet we evolved to eat.

Returning this ratio to one close to that with which we evolved is important.


Q:Tell me more about why these Omega 6 and Omega 3 matters to me...
A:A good portion of your brain is fat.  When you eat a typical diet, that fat is in the form of Omega 6s.  It has been shown that increasing omega 3 intake reduces the amount of omega 6s in the brain.  Omega 3s are MUCH better for the brain than omega 6s. "A balanced n-6/n-3 ratio in the diet is essential for normal growth and development and should lead to decreases in cardiovascular disease and other chronic diseases and improve mental health."


Q:Ok, so i need Omega 3s... Whats the deal with the difference between DHA and EPA?
A:DHA is basically the building block of the human brain.  DHA is super important for pregnant and nursing women and young children.

from: Essential fatty acids, DHA and human brain.

"Most of the brain growth is completed by 5-6 years of age. At birth brain weight is 70% of an adult, 15% brain growth occurs during infancy and remaining brain growth is completed during preschool years. DHA is the predominant structural fatty acid in the central nervous system and retina and its availability is crucial for brain development."

As DHA's main function is during brain development, DHA is essential to children, and adults need DHA, but not to the extent that children do.  For adults, we need EPA. 

EPA is kind of like the oil that keeps our brain engin running. It is important to use the right oil in your brain.  When we do not eat enough EPA (because we eat too much omega 6 and too little omega 3) our brain does not function properly.  by supplementing with EPA, we get our brains working properly again.


Q:How much EPA should I take in a day?
A:This is the 50 million dollar question.  The first study on the use of EPA for mental illness used NINE GRAMS of EPA a day.  This is cost prohibitive for most of us.

Generally, I'd say go with at least 1000mg a day. 

According to this study doses of 1000 and 2000 mg of EPA a day were both clinically effective in reducing depression. 

Q:Anything else you, wise one Penny, think people should know about EFAS?
A:As DHA is primarily for kids, you should try to get a supplement with as high a ration of EPA to DHA as possible.  After all, those pills are pricey, and if you want to get 1000mg of EPA a day, may as well pack in the EPA.  Also, there are no studies (that I have found) showing DHA to help with mental health. 

Second, I would shoot for an Omega supplement over fish oil caps.  To get that much EPA out of fish oil you'd have to swallow a LOT of pills, and there are other things in fish oil (sometimes vitamin A, for example) that you don't want to take too much of.

This post has been edited by Penny Century: 23 January 2006 - 05:13 PM

[Penny Century]

All questions left unanswered by this FAQ are compiled here.

If what we have written leaves you still wondering, you are not alone. Perhaps some of your questions have been answered in the thread linked to above. If not, please add your question on to the thread.

Thanks,

Penny