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Dr.Ek Kai Lin
Senior Manager
Scientific Marketing
Human Nutrition Asia Pacific
BASF

Making it all count:

Omega-3 Fatty Acids

There are fatty acids and there are What makes these long chain omega-3s special? EPA and DHA are required for
essential fatty acids. The omega-3 membrane fluidity and function in every cell, serving as precursors for signaling
fatty acid alpha-linolenic acid (ALA), for molecules and moderating inflammatory balance. In early life, DHA is an essential
building block during the key phase of brain development – a growth spurt from the
example, is an essential fatty acid for last trimester of pregnancy up to two years of age.
human health. It is essential because the In cardiovascular health, EPA and DHA play a role in the regulation of heart rate,
body needs it and yet, cannot produce it normal blood clotting, blood vessel function, lowering blood pressure, and, at higher
doses, lower triglycerides and may ease inflammation, which plays a major role in
but must get it from food. ALA is found the development of atherosclerosis during adult life.
in plant sources such as walnuts and In seniors, having a higher DHA status may prevent cognitive decline, as shown
flaxseed and is used to build the longer in a 2014 Japanese study by Otsuka et al. where community-dwelling elderly Japanese
individuals were surveyed using the mini-mental state examination. Depression is
chain omega-3s eicosapentaenoic not uncommon in the elderly and depressive symptoms may increase the risk of
acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid progressing from mild cognitive impairment to dementia. In a 2012 Australian
(DHA). The endogenous production of intervention trial, researchers Sinn et al. also found that EPA and DHA supplementation
showed an improvement in depression score and DHA supplementation improved
EPA and DHA is not very efficient and initial letter fluency score, a test of cognitive function.
hence food sources are recommended. I know about the benefits of omega-3s, but how do I know that
Food sources rich in EPA and DHA are I’m taking enough?
found primarily in fatty fish such as Given the compelling research supporting the health benefits of EPA and DHA omega-
salmon, tuna, sardines and in fish oil 3s, how do we bridge the gap between intake and status?
To measure your omega-3 level or status, there is a nutritional tool available that
supplements. Consumed at sufficient can help assess this in a single drop of blood, providing you with your status in the
amounts, EPA and DHA omega-3s can form of an index. The omega-3 index is defined as the total concentration of EPA and
deliver some health benefits in addition DHA in red blood cells, expressed as a percentage of total fatty acid content. In this
single drop of blood, the cell membrane content of fatty acids in the red blood cell
to ALA. will be measured. A number of studies (Schuchardt et. al., 2013; Harris et. al., 2004;