Omega 6/3 ratio - explain? page

[julesy]

Hi all,

I remember in Mark's book he talked about Omega 6 vs. omega 3 and it seems paleo tracker keeps track of that saying that ideally our omega 6/3 ratio should be around 2.3:1. Seems mine hovers at 4:1, but yesterday it was 8:1. Can anyone help me determine how to lower that ratio? What kinds of foods are high in Omega 6? I could look it up in Mark's book, but thought for now it would be easier to ask here while it's on my mind and the computer is in front of me! Thanks!

[RichMahogany]

Primal foods that are high in omega-6 include nuts and seeds, chicken, and pork (all pork, but especially CAFO pork). Limit these.

Balance it with fatty fish and lots of grass-fed beef(I think I read this can be as low as 1:1 n-6:n-3 ratio).

Don't worry about your day-to-day ratio. It's a long-term issue. Don't try to "fix" too much omega-6 intake by taking a ton of fish oil. This used to be suggested, but has fallen out of favor. Best to keep total PUFA intake low.

[OldGuy]

Hi all,

I remember in Mark's book he talked about Omega 6 vs. omega 3 and it seems paleo tracker keeps track of that saying that ideally our omega 6/3 ratio should be around 2.3:1. Seems mine hovers at 4:1, but yesterday it was 8:1. Can anyone help me determine how to lower that ratio? What kinds of foods are high in Omega 6? I could look it up in Mark's book, but thought for now it would be easier to ask here while it's on my mind and the computer is in front of me! Thanks!

Great article here on this. I'm also a big fan of Udo's Oil, if you have a health food store nearby.

[Zach]

Pretty much all animal foods are higher in o6 then o3. Most fish being the exception. Avocados, olive oil, eggs also have higher o6.

I wouldnt worry so much about the ratio, just try to limit o6 from packaged foods, oils and grain fed and farmed animal products. Eat wild/pastured/free range, whenever possible.

[RichMahogany]

Pretty much all animal foods are higher in o6 then o3. Most fish being the exception. Avocados, olive oil, eggs also have higher o6.

I wouldnt worry so much about the ratio, just try to limit o6 from packaged foods, oils and grain fed and farmed animal products. Eat wild/pastured/free range, whenever possible.

Had to do a double take, but I agree with this.

[Scott F]

I've read ratios of 1-1 to 4-1 is ideal for O6-O3.

Omega-6 fatty acid - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Modern Western diets typically have ratios of n−6 to n−3 in excess of 10 to 1, some as high as 30 to 1; the average ratio of omega-6 to omega-3 in the Western diet is 15/1–16.7/1.[6] Humans are thought to have evolved with a diet of a 1-to-1 ratio of omega-6 to omega-3 and the optimal ratio is thought to be 4 to 1 or lower,[6][7] and it is even better if there is more omega−3 than omega−6 (especially healthy ratio of omega−6 to omega−3 is from 1:1 to 1:4).[8] A ratio of 2–3/1 omega 6 to omega 3 helped reduce inflammation in patients with rheumatoid arthritis.[6] A ratio of 5/1 had a beneficial effect on patients with asthma but a 10/1 ratio had a negative effect.[6] A ratio of 2.5/1 reduced rectal cell proliferation in patients with colorectal cancer, whereas a ratio of 4/1 had no effect.[6]

Excess n−6 fats interfere with the health benefits of n−3 fats, in part because they compete for the same rate-limiting enzymes. A high proportion of n−6 to n−3 fat in the diet shifts the physiological state in the tissues toward the pathogenesis of many diseases: prothrombotic, proinflammatory and proconstrictive.[9]

[Zach]

Had to do a double take, but I agree with this.

Haha, im sure you would be surprised at how much effort i put into my diet and health.

[janie]

Primal foods that are high in omega-6 include nuts and seeds, chicken, and pork (all pork, but especially CAFO pork). Limit these.

Balance it with fatty fish and lots of grass-fed beef(I think I read this can be as low as 1:1 n-6:n-3 ratio).

Don't worry about your day-to-day ratio. It's a long-term issue. Don't try to "fix" too much omega-6 intake by taking a ton of fish oil. This used to be suggested, but has fallen out of favor. Best to keep total PUFA intake low.

Rich:
Can you say more about this? I've been wondering if DH's high LDL particle number might be the result of too many PUFA's via fish oil. It is a good one -- from Life Extension -- but I was thinking he might cut the dosage in half.

[RichMahogany]

Haha, im sure you would be surprised at how much effort i put into my diet and health.

Not really. I'm surprised at how much effort you put into counter-primal evangelism.

Rich:
Can you say more about this? I've been wondering if DH's high LDL particle number might be the result of too many PUFA's via fish oil. It is a good one -- from Life Extension -- but I was thinking he might cut the dosage in half.

I'm not really qualified to get into this much more. But the Chrises Kresser & Masterjohn are:
Episode 11 – Chris Masterjohn on cholesterol & heart disease (Part 1) (part 1 of 3, just follow the links)

As is Peter Attia, if you want to read a 9-part (so far) magnum opus that will make you understand cholesterol so well your doctor will call you for advice (ha, as if they listened!)
The straight dope on cholesterol

[ChocoTaco369]

Maybe my opinion is skewed, but I think the omega 3:6 ratio is complete BS and meaningless. The issue in my opinion is that the SAD just contains far too much rancid omega 6 from industrial seed oils, grains and legumes. There is some disconnect where people think omega 3 and omega 6 are essential and you'll die without them. That's absolutely stupid because of how that came about. It was based on some study where animals were fed fully hydrogenated oils so all the unsaturates were removed and the animals died. No kidding - there are no fully hydrogenated oils in nature and you're not eating real food. Maybe that's the issue?

Everything in nature contains fat. Every fat in nature contains some level of saturated, monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fat. Eat real food, not processed fats.

It's that simple. Don't worry about balancing some omega 3:6 ratio, just eat real food and it'll be fine. Focus on avoiding processed, refined fats because they are unstable. IMO, the issue isn't the ratio but people with high 6:3 ratios simply EAT A LOT OF REFINED SEED OILS! Eating a lot of nuts will skew your 6:3 ratio pretty highly, but IMO a 10:1 ratio that's due to a high consumption of poultry and nuts is not going to have the same issue as a 10:1 ratio where the foundation of your diet is grains and soybean oil.

And that's the issue IMO. Not the ratio, but the intake of oxidized and trans fats. Now you have people popping oxidized fish oil that traveled hundreds of miles in the back of some hot tractor trailer and sat under fluorescent lighting on store shelves for months refined from farmed fish in the name of balancing a ratio...not for me. Just eliminate the bad fats from your diet and you'll be okay.