Best Source of Omega 3 Fatty Acids - Discussion

Which is the best source of omega 3 fatty acids?

Quite frankly, this is a very difficult question to answer. Let us examine a few pros and cons.

Cold water fish, or fatty or oily fish, such as salmon, herring, mackerel and sardines, are high in DHA and EPA. Eating such fish regularly would thus seem like a good way to get your fix of omega 3's. Fish, however, because of today's environmental pollution, tend to contain high levels of dangerous toxins like mercury, dioxins and PCBs. These compounds could accumulate in our bodies if we eat too much fish, and can do much harm to human health.

Another issue with eating fish is that most of the fish which is more widely and cheaply available are farm-raised fish, and such varieties contain significantly less omega 3 fatty acids than their wide-caught counterparts. Wide-caught fish tend to be a lot more costly.

One way to beat the contamination issue is to consume fish oil supplements (pills, capsules, tablets), in particular those which are purified and certified to be free of toxins. Much research on omega 3 fatty acids has centered on fish oil, and there is much documentation revealing its health benefits. The large amount of research available supports, to some extent, the notion that fish oil is indeed the best source of omega 3.

There are other animal-based supplement sources of DHA and EPA, namely krill oil and green-lipped mussel oil. Less evidence and research are available on the health benefits of these oils, so it is hard to make a case for them being the best source of omega 3 fatty acids, especially when we consider the volumes of research which is available for fish oil.

Proponents of krill oil say that, because krill is lower on the food pyramid, it would accumulate less toxins. They add that krill oil contains astaxanthin, which is itself one of the most powerful antioxidants known to Man; astaxanthin helps to prevent the krill oil from going rancid too easily, too. For these reasons and others, they claim krill oil is the best source of omega 3 fatty acids available to us.

Krill oil supporters also say that, because krill is supposedly the largest biomass on Earth, they are an easily renewable and sustainable source. Is this true? Experts differ; there are also those who say harvesting krill endangers the animals which feed on them, including whales.

For vegans, vegetarians, or those who simply prefer to obtain their omega 3 fatty acids from plant-based foods, foods like purslane, chia and flaxseed are good sources of ALA. Oils like hemp oil and flaxseed oil are also excellent sources of ALA, with the latter being made into very popular supplements in the form of liquid or capsules.

Flaxseed oil has been put forth by its supporters as the richest source of omega 3 fatty acids, more than even what fish oil contains. Proponents of fish oil and other animal-based oils, however, claim that because flaxseed oil only offers ALA and not DHA or EPA, its health benefits are iffy and unsubstantiated. After all, most research on omega 3's has focused on DHA and EPA, and very little has been carried out on ALA. Although the human body is able to convert ALA into DHA and EPA, this can only be carried out on a limited basis.

The supporters of fish oil, green-lipped mussel oil and krill oil each put forth their own oil as the most potent and best source of omega 3 fatty acids on this planet. Some prefer flaxseed oil. Others do not take supplements, and prefer to rely on whole and natural foods.

In the absence of research which directly compares the various foods and supplements, it is very difficult to say exactly which is the best source of omega 3. One thing about omega 3 supplements - often, those who say a particular source is the best one available actually have a vested interest, either in producing or selling those supplements. And, with regard to supplements, whether fish oil, krill oil, green-lipped mussel oil, flaxseed oil or others, the main challenge is actually to find a really good brand which is indeed pure and potent.

So, which is the best source of omega 3 fatty acids? Do we eat fish? Take fish oil? Use krill oil? Consume green-lipped mussel oil? Take flaxseed oil? Eat lots of flaxseeds?

It is your choice, really. The truth is, the abovementioned are all pretty good sources of omega 3 fatty acids. Perhaps the wise thing to do would be to consume a variety of different sources of these essential fatty acids.