Vegetarians And Vegans Need Omega 3 Fats For Good Health, But How Do They Get Them?

Everybody needs an adequate supply of the omega 3 essential fatty acids and their diet for good health. Modern research is showing that most of us don’t get enough of the omega 3 fats

There’s a simple solution to this. Eat more fish or take fish oil supplements. Unfortunately the solution isn’t so simple for strict vegetarians or vegans.

Because of course strict vegetarians, and vegans, don’t eat fish.

Not that fish is the only source of the omega 3 fatty acids, though it’s by far the best one. Other sources have included, in the past, such foods as beef and eggs.

However modern farming practices have now meant that neither beef nor eggs are particularly high in the omega 3 fats anymore. That’s because these healthy fatty acids come from the diet. And in the past beef cattle ate grass, and grass is high in omega 3.

But modern farming practices have changed, and farmers are now able to make more money by feeding their cattle on grain rather than grass, and unfortunately grain does not have much omega 3 in it, and therefore beef taken from an animal fed on grain also has very little omega 3. The same principles now apply to modern eggs, whereas in the past they were high in the omega 3 fats this is now no longer the case.

And of course vegetarians would probably not be eating beef for eggs anyway. So how do they get vegetarian Omega 3 in their diet?

There are Omega 3 fats in plants. Many people take flaxseed oil supplements because it is known that flax seed oil is high in omega 3. What is much less well-known is that the form of Omega 3 fat found in flax is different from those found in fish.

Fish is high in 2 particular omega 3 fats called DHA and EPA, and these are the 2 most important of these essential fatty acids. Both of these are extremely important to our health and well-being, and a low level of these contributes to a range of lifestyle diseases.

But plant based sources of Omega3 do not contain DHA and EPA, rather they contain a fatty acid called ALA, and this is not as healthy. In fact the health benefits of ALA come from the ability of the body to transform ALA into DHA and EPA. Unfortunately very little of our ALA intake is transformed into DHA and EPA, some estimates are that only one or 2 percent of ALA is converted.

So taking flax seed oil supplements is not an adequate solution for strict vegetarians all vegans who do not eat fish. And up to date that has been a conundrum. Because of these people, like all the rest of us, need DHA and EPA in their diet.

But the good news is that new research is now showing that there may be another alternative, and it is to be found in Echium seed oil. Echium seed oil contains a different form of Omega 3 fat called SDA, and this is more effectively converted into DHA and EPA, and also has some health benefits of its own.

Currently research is ongoing, and it is too early to say that taking Echium seed oil capsules is as good for your health as taking fish oil capsules. But if you’re a vegetarian who doesn’t eat fish it’s certainly encouraging.

Vegetarians and vegans are like all of us. For good health they need DHA and EPA in their diet. Choosing to avoid eating fish means that their range of food choices to help increase their intake of the essential fatty acids known as the omega 3 fats is much more limited.

However Echium seed oil capsules may well provide the solution. Unfortunately more research still needs to be done.

And if you’re not a vegetarian visit my website for more information about vegetarian omega 3 and the health benefits of EPA and DHA.