With so many choices now available of vegan-friendly and plant-based omegas, it can be hard to work out what choice to make. Should you use an algae supplement or eat flax, chia or hemp seeds? Do you even need to worry about essential fatty acids at all?
Firstly, what are omegas?
Omegas are polyunsaturated fatty acids that are well associated with health properties throughout the body, or with poor health outcomes when we’re not getting the right types, or we’re getting a big imbalance. Whilst there are a number of different types of omega fats- including omega-7 and omega-9, only the omega-3 fats ALA and omega-6 fats LA are deemed biologically essential, meaning that our bodies must ingest them from our diets.
This doesn’t mean that the other omegas aren’t important, just that our bodies can make the other omegas from other dietary “building blocks”. Not everybody does this efficiently though, and that’s where thinking about supplementation comes in. We can get omega-3 from foods like flax and chia but they need to be ground preferably used right away, or stored in an airtight container and not exposed to heat. Depending on your overall diet, and your genetics, the omega-3 found in these plant foods may not be sufficient to provide adequate long-chain omega-3s EPA and DHA.
Omegas are a common area of concern, and it’s not just vegans and those following a plant-based diet who need to be mindful of getting sufficient healthy fats. Most of us are getting way too little omega-3 in our diets- fats that are associated with anti-inflammatory properties and that support our brains, hearts, joints, mood, immune system and even the gut microbiome. Besides getting too little omega-3, most people are getting far too much omega-6 in proportion, and this imbalance of fats may drive inflammation in the body, which we know is an important risk factor in many diseases. It’s important to acknowledge that omega-6 is still absolutely necessary though, and some omega-6s including omega-6 GLA have well-known benefits for women’s hormones, hair and skin.
Plant-based omega supplements like Ahiflower provide omega-3 SDA, as well as ALA, which allows it to convert to EPA up to 4x more effectively than flax, and biosynthesise in key tissues like the brain and liver almost as much as a marine DHA source. Omega-3 ALA converts to EPA at around 5-6%, with better conversion in pre-menopausal women, those eating a plant-based diet and not supplementing with algae, whereas omega-3 SDA converts to EPA at 30-40%. Hemp contains omega-3 SDA at around 2%, though the highest known natural plant source of omega-3, Ahiflower, provides 8-10x more of this omega-3. Additionally, Ahiflower offers good levels of the omega-6 GLA we find in evening primrose oil, and omega-9 Oleic Acid, a famed staple of the Mediterranean diet.
Algae sources provide just the long chain omegas, and are typically more skewed towards DHA. Getting enough DHA is critical, but when we take it in directly (as in fish or algae), we down-regulate our body’s natural omega-3 metabolism pathway. Algae may be a wise choice to supplement during pregnancy, breastfeeding and in the case of traumatic brain injuries, but may be best accompanied with flax, chia or Ahiflower so that you get all the benefits of the entire family of omega-3.
