Omega-3s, fatty acids, the cell membrane, and you!
Recently, there has been increased interest in the role of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs), more commonly referred to as omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids, and their role in reducing inflammation and improving immune function.
Fatty acids are classified as short chain, medium chain, and long chain fatty acids, based on the number of carbon atoms. The long chain omega-3s and -6s are what we will focus on today.
Both omega-3 and omega-6 are defined as essential, meaning they can not be synthesized by the body and must be derived from the diet.
Fatty acids have nonpolar, hydrophobic (water-averse) tails, so the tails face inside, meeting at the inner cell membrane. The heads are hydrophilic (water-loving), so they face outside towards intra and extracellular fluid.
Imagine your cell membrane:
Imagine the importance of the integrity of your cell membrane. It is responsible for what comes in and about of the cell and how receptors are turned on and off.
The balance of the PUFAs, omega-3 and omega-6, is critical for how your body mounts both an acute and chronic inflammatory response. High omega-6 composition in the cell membrane can stimulate chronic inflammation.
Chronic inflammation is responsible for most disease states, including:
Cancer
Arthritis
Cardiovascular disease
Neurodegenerative disease like Alzheimer’s
Psoriasis and eczema
Allergies and asthma
Infection
Adequate omega-3s improve cell membrane fluidity, surface receptor expression, and thus improve regulation of immune cells, thereby reducing inflammation.
The ratio matters!
The standard American diet has as Omega 6 : 3 ratio of up to 25 : 1. We evolved with a 1 : 1 ratio! Most evidence suggests a 4 : 1 ratio is optimal for reducing inflammation.
The great news is, we can easily measure the omega 6 : 3 ratio in our red blood cells and create targeted dietary and supplement regimens to achieve that ratio.
If you think you are suffering from chronic inflammation. Optimizing your ratio is a great place to start!
Sources:
Kumar NG, Contaifer D, Madurantakam P, Carbone S, Price ET, Van Tassell B, Brophy DF, Wijesinghe DS. Dietary Bioactive Fatty Acids as Modulators of Immune Function: Implications on Human Health. Nutrients. 2019; 11(12):2974. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu11122974
Santos, Heitor & Price, James & Bueno, Allain. (2020). Beyond Fish Oil Supplementation: The Effects of Alternative Plant Sources of Omega-3 Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids upon Lipid Indexes and Cardiometabolic Biomarkers-An Overview. Nutrients. 12. 10.3390/nu12103159.
