Showing posts with label omega-3. Show all posts
Showing posts with label omega-3. Show all posts

Omega-3 eggs - DHA eggs

Jan 2014  › › › DHA eggs - omega-3 eggs
Eggs branded "omega-3", "DHA' or "pastured" do contain omega-3 fats like Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA).
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Even ordinary regular eggs also contain some amount of these fats. The crux of the problem is the lack of clarity in the types and quantities of fatty acids present in a particular product.

Free-range pasture poultry farming

Before the advent of intensive commercial poultry farming, free-range pasture poultry farming was practised wherein the birds were allowed to move around the land freely foraging on  worms, bugs, insects, leaves, grass, wild seeds etc. The natural feed and its variety helped in producing eggs which had good amount of omega-3, DHA and EPA. However these hen lay eggs only in the warmer months which limited the productivity.

In 2007, Mother Earth News egg testing project came to a conclusion that eggs of hens raised on pasture when compared to conventional commercial ones were likely to contain,
  • "1/3 less cholesterol
  • 1/4 less saturated fat
  • 2/3 more vitamin A
  • 2 times more omega-3 fatty acids
  • 3 times more vitamin E
  • 7 times more beta carotene".
Dr.Heather Karsten et all Of the College of Agricultural Sciences, University Park, Pennsylvania, in their study on the nutrient content of eggs have concluded that pastured birds produced about three times more omega-3 fat in their eggs than did birds raised on an industrial diet. The pasture dominated by legumes like clover and alfalfa added more omega-3 to the product than plain grass pasture. They also found that the increase in the fatty acids corresponds to its level in the foraged food. There is also a marked increase in the levels of vitamin A and E.

Factory eggs

The advent of 'battery cages' or factory poultry farming has no doubt increased the productivity as well as the profitability of poultry industry. The predominant components of fat sources in the poultry feed are corn and soy which are very high in omega-6 fats like arachidonic acid (ARA) and poor in DHA.

The change in the food habits and the fast food culture have skewed up the fatty acid composition of American diet, resulting in drastic increase in the levels of omega-6 fats and steep decline in docosahexaenoic acid and EPA content. Similarly the high-protein, high-energy poultry feed used in the egg factories has drastically brought down the DHA and EPA content and increased the omega-6 presence. The eggs produced in these factories are very high in ARA and low in omega-3 fats. Though arachidonic acid is required for the body, it can be harmful if consumed in excess as it is a precursor to many inflammatory processes. Further high levels of ARA affect the synthesis and utilization of docosahexaenoic acid.

Omega and DHA eggs

Alpha linolenic acid (ALA), an omega-3 fatty acid, is a precursor of the DHA and EPA. ALA is an essential fatty acid as the human body cannot synthesize it. It has to be necessarily sourced through our food. ALA is plentiful in flaxseed, hemp oil and walnuts. The conversion of ALA to docosahexaenoic acid is an inefficient process in the humans and to fulfil the body's requirements docosahexaenoic acid, it has to be consumed through the diet.

Docosahexaenoic acid is very important for the healthy functioning of the body organs, especially the brain. It was found in research studies that feeding hen with ALA rich feed or docosahexaenoic acid rich products, enhances the fatty acid content of the eggs greatly. The eggs producers have resorted to feed the chicken with flaxseed, fish oil or fish products to enhance the fatty acid content. The hen have greater capacity for converting ALA present in their feed to DHA. Omega-3 eggs may have 5 times as much Omega-3 as the conventional ones.

The market is flooded with fatty acid enriched eggs. Now the issue is the amount of docosahexaenoic acid present in these products. Depending upon the type docosahexaenoic acid source and its quantity added to the feed, the amount of DHA present may differ among the products from different hen stocks. Simultaneously the arachidonic acid content in the feed has to be checked as it is the precursor to many proinflammatory eicosanoids. Omega-3 egg or DHA egg can contribute to the healthy life. However they have to be consumed sparingly as their cholesterol content is high, almost contributing the total daily cholesterol requirement in one egg.

To sum up we may say that omega DHA enriched eggs help in increasing the docosahexaenoic acid content of our diets.
  • Eggs of pasture raised hen are also equally good.
  • We should not get carried away by the deceptive labels and look for real content of the product.
  • More than the total fatty acid content we have to look for the DHA content.
  • Considering the high cholesterol content, we have to restrict the consumption to one or two eggs a day.
  • As the omega-3 eggs may not fulfill the total docosahexaenoic acid requirements of our body, we have to augment our diet with DHA rich fish and other supplements like fish oil, algal oil, green lipped mussel oil or krill oil.
Reference:
1.http://news.psu.edu/story/140750/2003/05/01/research/pasture-ized-poultry
2.http://www.motherearthnews.com/real-food/tests-reveal-healthier-eggs.aspx#axzz2UN1KYYFO

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DHA eggs and omega-3 eggs
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Krill oil omega-3 fatty acids - Krill DHA - Krill EPA

Mar 2014   › › Omega-3 DHA and EPA in krill oil
Krill, small shrimp-like crustaceans, are very important food sources of many marine animals including the largest known animal species, the blue whale.
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Krill is a rich source of omega-3 (n-3) long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs), such as
eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA).

Omega-3 fats like, alpha-linolenic acid (ALA), EPA and docosahexaenoic acid are very important for the biological functions of the human body. In the recent years, the role of PUFA nutrition in stress-resilience, neurodevelopment and neurocognition has been recognised. Recent research studies have associated the risk of diseases such as inflammation, neurodegenerative disorders and neuropsychiatric disorders with the nutritional deficiency of EPA and docosahexaenoic acid.

Omega fats -ALA, EPA and DHA

ALA is available from plant based foods like vegetable fats, walnuts and algae. EPA and DHA are present in marine sources of food such as fish, algae and krill. However ALA form of omega-3 is not directly used by the body and it has to be metabolized into EPA and DHA for the utilization of the body. ALA is not well-absorbed in the intestines and vegans have the risk of developing nutritional deficiency diseases of omega-3 fats. Though ALA supplementation appears to increase the EPA, there is not much increase in docosahexaenoic acid in phospholipids. Administration of preformed docosahexaenoic acid shows significant increase in its proportion in phospholipids.

What is krill oil?

Krill is shrimp-like crustacean thriving in oceans forming swarms. The body of this crustacean contains lipids in the form of oil. Though there are more than eighty species of krill, the most sought after species are Antarctic krill, Euphausia superba. Antarctic krill has higher concentrations of omega-3 EPA, docosahexaenoic acid and astaxanthin antioxidant.

The nutritional value of krill increases with the Antarctic summer with increased availability of their food, phytoplankton. The right harvesting time will be at the end of an Antarctic summer. Soon after the harvest, the krill are quick-frozen to preserve their nutritional value. Two extraction methods, namely hexane extraction and cold-vacuum extraction process are used for the extraction of krill oil. In hexane extraction, small quantities of the chemical may remain back in the end product. In cold-vacuum extraction process, the nutrients are not affected and no additives are present.

Bioavailability of krill DHA and EPA

Compared to fish fats, docosahexaenoic acid content of the krill oil is similar, but the EPA content of fish oil is higher. In fish, the fats are stored as triglycerides. However, in krill oil about 50% of the FAs are attached to phospholipids, especially phosphatidylcholine. Research studies have indicated that omega-3 fats as phospholipids are better absorbed than those from triglycerides. Bioavailability of docosahexaenoic acid in the plasma and its concentration in the target cell membranes increased substantially when ingested as phospholipids.

Stine M. Ulven et all in their comparative study of krill oil and fish fats found that when "the daily EPA + DHA dose in the krill oil group was 62.8% of the dosage given in the fish oil group", "Plasma levels of EPA, docosahexaenoic acid, and DPA increased significantly from baseline to the end of the intervention phase" but there was no significant difference in the change of omega-3 fats between the fish fats and the krill oil groups. It was concluded that omega-3 fats from krill oil are readily and effectively absorbed after ingestion and subsequently distributed in the blood.

Health benefits of krill oil

  • It contains omega-3 EPA and DHA in phospholipid structure which increases the absorbability.
  • Though a marine source, the risk of contamination with heavy metals is minimal.
  • It is also a natural source of vitamins A, D and E.
  • The potent antioxidant, astaxanthin, present in krill oil increases the shelf-life of the product.
  • Many antioxidant benefits are realized from the krill lipids.
  • Omega-3 fats like EPA have shown immense benefits in hypertension, cardiovascular diseases and coronary heart disease.
  • Omega-3 docosahexaenoic acid and EPA generate neuroprotective metabolites alleviating the conditions of ADHD, dyslexia, autism, schizophrenia, personality disorder, bipolar disorder, cognitive impairment, cognitive decline and psychosis.
  • Omega-3 fats, docosahexaenoic acid and EPA are required for the neurodevelopment of the fetus and for treating maternal depression.
  • Omega-3 fats docosahexaenoic acid and eicosapentaenoic acid are effective in treating inflammation and pain due rheumatoid arthritis.
Omega-3 krill oil has few side effects. Rarely some people may suffer from belching, nausea, bloating, or diarrhea. People using hypertension medication, diabetes medication, anticoagulants, weight loss medicines must consult their health care provider before using krill lipid supplements as they may be contraindicated.
Related topics on Nutritional deficiency diseases:
DHA and pregnancy.
DHA and brain.
Omega 3 fatty acids food sources
DHA food sources.
DHA side effects.
Algal DHA.
DHA fish oil.
DHA supplements.
Arachidonic acid (ARA).


References:
1.Stine M. Ulven, Bente Kirkhus, Amandine Lamglait, Samar Basu, Elisabeth Elind, Trond Haider, Kjetil Berge, Hogne Vik,  Jan I. Pedersen. Metabolic Effects of Krill Oil are Essentially Similar to Those of Fish Oil but at Lower Dose of EPA and DHA, in Healthy Volunteers. Lipids. 2011 January; 46(1): 37–46.
2.Joanne Bradbury. Docosahexaenoic Acid (DHA): An Ancient Nutrient for the Modern Human Brain. Nutrients. 2011 May; 3(5): 529–554.

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omega-3 krill oil - Krill DHA and EPA
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