Essential Fatty Acids & Omega Oil: The Story Behind the Mis-Use of Omega-3 Fish Oil

Omega-3 Fish Oil is a Widely Touted Nutritional Supplement

Unfortunately, the majority of the information regarding this product is, in fact, mis-information.

Further, and more unfortunate, is the fact that many people now supplement their diet with only the omega-3 fish oils rather than the full omega oil complex of essential fatty acids, including omega-6 fatty acids.

Not Well-Known is that There are Two Classes of Omega Oil Essential Fatty Acids: the Omega-3 Family and the Omega-6 Family 

The omega-3 family is often in the form of fish oil which contains the nutrient substances EPA and DHA; flax seed oil is another carrier of omega-3 fatty acids. These omega-3 fatty acids contain alpha-linolenic acid (ALA).

Recent research has focused on the beneficial effects of EPA and DHA in:

• heart disease
• bipolar disorder
• learning disorders
• attention deficit disorder

The omega-6 fatty acid-omega oil family includes linoleic acid (LA), arachidonic acid (AA), and gamma-linolenic acid (GLA).

The average North American eats a high amount of linoleic acid (omega-6 fatty acids) in processed foods, margarine, and vegetable oils. American diets contain a lot of arachidonic acid in meat, eggs, and some fish.

There are Several Reasons Why Most Nutritionists are Simply Wrong in Their Interpretations About Human Essential Fatty Acids and Omega Oil Needs 

First, the normal rate of conversion of linoleic acid to gamma-linolenic acid (GLA), and additional end-products in the metabolic pathway, is relatively slow in humans. 

For example, vegetarians consume primarily linoleic acid and consume very few of the down-line essential fatty acids normally produced along the omega-6 pathway. Again, linoleic acid is poorly converted to GLA. Contrary to popular belief, within a community of people whose lifestyles are otherwise similar, vegetarians live less long than non-vegetarians, so the reduced supply of GLA may not be beneficial.

The argument goes that linoleic acid is in abundant supply so there's no need for more omega-6 intake. The failure of this argument is that little of the linoleic converts to the biologically active forms of omega-6 fatty acids.

Gamma-linolenic acid (GLA) is one of the essential fatty acids in the omega oil family. Gamma-linolenic acid (GLA) is found in food and can reverse all the features of the essential fatty acid deficiency.

Omega-6 fatty acids have at least four roles in the body:

• maintenance of cellular membrane structure
• formation of short-lived cellular regulation molecules
• control of skin permeability to water, including the gastro-intestinal tract and the blood-brain barrier
• regulation of cholesterol manufacture

The Omega-6 Fatty Acids Have Been Virtually Ignored, Particularly by Scientists Who Should Know Better! 

Deficiencies of omega-6 fatty acids in animals and humans lead to the development of multiple biochemical and biological abnormalities. In contrast, it has proved extremely difficult to demonstrate biological abnormalities in animals deprived only of omega-3 fatty acids.

The important point, here, is that for omega-3 fatty acids to express their normal biological effects, they must be given with omega-6 fatty acids. Omega-6 fatty acids are biologically active when given without omega-3 fatty acids. In human milk and in most tissues of the body, the ratio of omega-6 fatty acids to omega-3 fatty acids is in the range of 3:1 to 9:1.

Diseases Surely Follow an Unbalanced Intake of Essential Fatty Acids 

Many factors including:

• aging
• diabetes
• nutritional factors
• stress related hormones
• and viral infections interfere with the formation of gamma-linolenic acid (GLA).

Disease states, such as eczema and premenstrual syndrome, result from impaired linoleic acid metabolism: that is, the production of gamma-linolenic acid (GLA) from linoleic acid.

The only solution, therefore, is the direct provision of gamma-linolenic acid (GLA) to by-pass the impaired step.

I'd urge anyone who has received advice to use omega-3 fish oils, alone and without GLA omega-6 fatty acids, to rethink what you're doing with your esssential oil supplement. Taking fish oil alone is a dietary mistake.