Everything You Need to Know About Omega-3 Fats

Controversial information about omega-3 fats can lead to confusion about whether or not you need to supplement and how you should do it. This post will answer all of your questions.

This is a super important subject — life-changing because who hasn’t had a run-in with fish oil? Should I take it? Should I not? What’s a good source? Can it be fermented? Does it go rancid? How much should I take? Will it make my breath stink, and do I even need it? A good fish oil shouldn’t, and yes, you probably do.

You should be on it. Your child should be on it. Your neighbor’s best friend’s cousin’s uncle’s mother should be on it and everyone else in between . . . unless, of course, you’re drowning in fatty fish or are having an affair with an avocado.

While you’re thinking about your love for fish, let me establish some fundamental information about fat:

• There are three types of fat: saturated fats, trans fats, and unsaturated fats.

• There are two types of unsaturated fats: polyunsaturated fats and monounsaturated fats.

• There are three types of polyunsaturated fats: omega-3, 6, and 9 fats — and three types of fatty acids make up omega-3 fats.

You need the omega-3 fats from fish or fish oil because your body can’t make them on its own.

Now, I know what you’re thinking:

“I am a vegetarian. My diet is loaded with fat.”

“I’m doing keto.” 

“I eat eggs and meat on the regular.”

To which I say you’re still deficient in omega-3 fats.

Your diet might look good on paper, but if you are relying on fat sources (albeit “healthy”) that don’t contain omega-3s or are inefficient at converting fatty acids those plant-based fats contain into usable DHA and EPA, you’re getting way too much of the wrong kind of good fat.

What happens if you don’t get enough omega-3 fats? Dry skin, brittle nails, inflammatory disease, skin rashes, difficulty sleeping, joint pain, brain fog, fatigue, heart problems, high cholesterol, cognitive disorders, or worse — death.

Benefits of omega-3 fats

Omega-3 fatty acids contain ALA (Alpha-linolenic acid), DHA (Docosahexaenoic acid), and EPA (Eicosapentaenoic acid). EPA and DHA are the primary fatty acids you get from fish oil.

DHA makes up 8% of your brain weight and is essential for brain function, cognitive performance, memory, learning ability, vision, fetal development, school performance, and neural tissue. In addition, EPA plays a vital role in inflammation, and ALA is mainly used for energy metabolism and is found in plant-based fats.

Omega-3 fats have been proven to increase muscle mass, improve muscle composition and anabolic response, reduce cortisol levels, decrease pain and inflammation, and improve PCOS and chronic inflammatory diseases (like Crohn’s, colitis, lupus, psoriasis, rheumatoid arthritis, and multiple sclerosis), prevent depression and ADHD, give your skin that glow-stick glow, benefit the cardiovascular system, ward off strokes, protect your nerves from damage, promote weight loss, help your neurons fire, regulate your hormones, protect your DNA, and pretty much everything else in between saving the planet and preserving the human race.

The problem with plant-based omega-3s

Since your body can’t manufacture omega-3 fatty acids, you have to either get them from your diet or supplements. You can eat a ton of nuts and seeds that contain ALA, which the body can convert to EPA and DHA, but you’re still not going to meet your quota, and you will gain weight.

In addition, many people are inefficient at converting ALA from plant-based omega-3s to DHA and EPA — and the linoleic acid (omega-6) competes with ALA (omega-3) for the same enzymes. Did you get that?

If you’re relying soley on plants for your fat, you’re consuming large amounts of omega-6 fats, you’re relying on ALA to be converted to EPA and DHA, and it’s not highly bioavailable (because it’s competing for enzymes and has to be converted).

The ideal ratio of omega fats

First, you should know that omega-6 and 9 fats are not bad. On the contrary, in the right amount, they’re good. The problem is that many of us consume too many omega-6 fats and not enough omega-3s. Most people have a ratio of 14-25 times omega-6 to omega-3 fats.

This would be great if the ideal ratio weren’t 2 to 1. (Some would argue it is 4 to 1).

You need twice as many omega-3 fats, or you’re setting yourself up for all sorts of inflammatory conditions, and you will uptake 6 and 9 fats over what little DHA/EPA you’re getting. So you’ll literally shift from the anti-inflammatory side of the spectrum toward pro-inflammatory diseases.

I’m not making this up:

The western diet is characterized by an excessive amount of omega-6 fats and a very high omega-6/omega-3 ratio. […] The increased intake of saturated fatty acids and omega-6 essential fatty acids and the reduced consumption of foods containing omega-3 fatty acid, (which may exert anti-inflammatory properties) is thought to promote the pathogenesis of many inflammatory-related diseases, including cardiovascular disease, cancer, and autoimmune diseases.

Translation: If you have more omega-3 fats in your diet than omega-6 fats, you will suppress inflammation and reap the benefits of omega-3s. If you are drowning in omega-6 fats, you’ll promote inflammation and increase your risk factors for any number of health issues. 

Balancing your omega 3-6-9 fats

• Limit processed foods and avoid hydrogenated oil, canola, corn, vegetable, cottonseed, and soybean oils.

• When you cook with olive oil, utilize the lowest heat possible to reduce oxidation.

• Replace fake butter with grass-fed butter as it is higher in omega-3).

• When you eat fat, ensure you’re not only eating “good fats,” but balancing your omega-3 ratio.

• Incorporate fish into your diet or fish oil supplements.

Coconut oil is an entirely different fat altogether, and it’s all sorts of amazing — but it doesn’t contain omega-3 fats. So if coconut oil is all you’re consuming, you’ll reap the benefits of all the things coconut offers while being deficient in omega-3s.

If you rely on flax seeds and chia for your omega-3 fats, you’re only converting about 8% to use. That’s not enough. You would have to eat a truckload of chia seeds to come close to meeting your quota.

If you’re using nuts as your fat source, you’re flooding your body with 4-22x the omega-6 to omega-3 fats, and if you’re relying on plants for pretty much everything, you’re only getting trace amounts of what you need.

Should you supplement with omega-3 fats?