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Eating enough healthy fats is great for brain and heart health, but new research may have provided even more evidence in favor of adding them, especially omega-3s, to your diet.
“We found that a higher omega-6/omega-3 ratio is associated with a higher risk of dying,” said Yuchen Zhang, lead author of the April study published in the journal eLife, in a Press release. Zhang is a doctoral student in the Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics at the University of Georgia College of Public Health.
Omega-3 fatty acids are found naturally in foods like fish – especially oily fish like salmon, tuna and sardines – as well as in flaxseeds, walnuts, chia seeds and in supplements. foods such as fish oil.
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Foods rich in omega-3 fatty acids include salmon, sardines, and various nuts, including walnuts.
The three main omega-3 fatty acids are alpha-linolenic acid, or ALA; eicosapentaenoic acid, or EPA; and docosahexaenoic acid, known as DHA, according to the National Institutes of Health. The body must obtain all three of these elements from food, and omega-3s contribute to the health of the heart, blood vessels, lungs, immune system and endocrine system.
Foods rich in omega-6 fatty acids, on the other hand, include nuts, seeds, corn and soy, as well as the oils and preservatives produced from these foods, the authors said. Linoleic acid is the most common omega-6 fatty acid.
“Some evidence suggests that the high ratio of omega-6 to omega-3 fatty acids typical of Western diets – 20:1 or even higher, compared to an estimated ratio of 1:1 during most of the world. “Human evolution – contributes to many chronic diseases, including cardiovascular disease, cancer and autoimmune diseases,” Zhang said.
But the results of previous studies have been mixed, she added, and few have investigated the role of imbalance in mortality. Additionally, it is difficult to accurately measure fatty acid intake, in part due to reliance on participants’ own memories of their dietary intake.
Zhang and the other researchers studied associations between the omega-3/omega-6 ratio in blood plasma – a more objective measure – and death from any cause, particularly cancer or cardiovascular disease. , the two leading causes of death worldwide.
They used data from 85,425 people who took part in the UK Biobank study, which tracked the health outcomes of more than half a million people aged 40 to 69 in the UK for at least a decade .
The participants, whose plasma samples were collected between 2007 and 2010, answered questionnaires about their diet, including whether they took fish oil supplements.
After nearly 13 years of follow-up, the authors found that participants with the highest omega-6/omega-3 ratios were 26% more likely to die prematurely from any cause, 14% more likely to die of cancer and 31% more likely to die of cancer. die from heart disease than those with the lowest ratios. Considered individually, high levels of omega-6 and omega-3 were associated with a lower risk of premature death. But the protective effects of omega-3s were greater, which likely explains “why a high ratio of omega-6 to omega-3 was linked to harm,” the authors said.
Despite the results, the study is “only a ‘snapshot’ of biomarkers and dietary intake of omega 3 and 6. This is a correlation and not a causal link,” he said. said Dr. Lauren R. Sastre, director of the Farm to Clinic program and assistant professor in the Department of Nutritional Sciences at East Carolina University, via email. Sastre did not participate in the study.
“And even this relationship cannot be strongly supported due to methodological flaws in not accounting for other dietary components in overall health and clinical outcomes,” Sastre added. “There are many anti-inflammatory food components (nutrients, phytochemicals, etc.) that are associated with reducing all-cause, cancer, and (cardiovascular disease) mortality, and to evaluate just omega 3 and 6, strong confounding factors may be present that could bias the results.
If omega-6/omega-3 balance indeed has more to do with the risk of premature death than the study has the capacity to prove, it could be due to the possible role of arachidonic acid, an acid Omega-6 fat, Kristin said. Kirkpatrick, a registered dietitian nutritionist at the Cleveland Clinic and author of “Regenerative Health: Discover Your Metabolic Type and Renew Your Liver for Life.”
Arachidonic acid is what the body converts from linoleic acid. It is a “building block of molecules that can promote inflammation, blood clotting, and constriction of blood vessels,” according to Harvard Health. But this fatty acid can also be transformed into molecules that fight inflammation and blood clots.
Omega-6s aren’t bad in and of themselves, but having too much can offset the anti-inflammatory factors associated with omega-3s, Kirkpatrick said, so “a more balanced approach…might be favorable.”
“The source of omega 6 may also be a compensating factor,” she added via email. “Processed seed oils can also contain high amounts of omega 6, for example.”
Focusing on that balance and increasing your intake of omega-3-rich foods may be more important than simply limiting those high in omega-6, Kirkpatrick said.
“I would also look at the quality of omega 6 foods in the diet,” she added, “aiming for whole foods…rather than more processed products which may contain large amounts via the addition of seed oils.”
If you’re curious about your plasma omega-6 to omega-3 ratio, ask your doctor to test it. In Kirkpatrick’s practice, she often works with her patients’ doctors to do just that. Some patients request it in an effort to improve their mental health, heart health or risk of dementia, she said.
Overall, “it’s important to note that an unbalanced ratio is just one chapter in our story of better or worse health,” Kirkpatrick said.
“Getting a variety of fiber-rich foods (beneficial for the microbiome) and other nutrient-dense foods, along with adequate, good-quality sleep, stress management, and physical activity play a role an important role in how long we enjoy good health. our life. »
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