Meeting Omega 3 Needs on a Vegan Diet

Does fat really make you fat? Nutrients that provide you with energy are still demonized and often avoided, especially during dieting. Completely unjustly! These little power blocks can do more than you think and are essential for your physical and mental performance, both in everyday life and in the gym.
The star among them? Omega 3! Want to know why you specifically need this fatty acid in sufficient amounts and in which foods it appears? We’ll reveal how it helps support your athletic performance and why it plays an important role for your health.

1. What are Omega-3 Fatty Acids?

First things first: Omega-3 fatty acids are polyunsaturated fatty acids that your body cannot produce on its own. This means you have to obtain them through your diet. However, in reality, this is often difficult for most of us.

The reason? Omega-3 fatty acids are mainly found in fish. Fish is either consumed too little or deliberately avoided, for example, when following a plant-based diet.

Basically, Omega-3 fatty acids are divided into ALA (alpha-linolenic acid), which is found almost exclusively in plants, and EPA (eicosapentaenoic acid) and DHA (docosahexaenoic acid), which, as mentioned, you mainly find in fish.
Important: When consuming Omega-3 fatty acids, you should especially focus on a high intake of EPA and DHA, because the enzymatic conversion of ALA to EPA is limited to a maximum of 10 to 15%, and to DHA about 4% in the human body.
Thus, the conversion rate is too low to cover the need for long-chain Omega-3 fatty acids solely through ALA intake [7].

2. What are the functions of DHA & EPA?

DHA for Brainpower

DHA is particularly important for your mental power, as up to 97% of the Omega-3 fatty acids in your brain consist of DHA. Therefore, it is essential for your thinking ability, learning capacity, reaction time, and many other neurological processes that determine your cognitive performance.

EPA in stressful times

EPA is especially effective in combination with DHA and is a real secret tip during stressful times. Recent scientific studies show a special importance of EPA in promoting positive emotions [2]. Additionally, EPA is attributed with a positive effect on the heart.

Power duo for training & recovery

For athletes, Omega-3 fatty acids are important due to the high physical demands. The result of a systematic review showed that muscle soreness after training can be reduced by Omega-3 capsules at dosages of 1.8 – 3 g daily [5]. Therefore, it is assumed that additional intake of Omega-3 fatty acids can reduce the load-induced inflammatory response due to their anti-inflammatory effect [6].

3. The "Omega Balance"

For Omega-3 fatty acids to work well in the body, our diet must not contain too many Omega-6 fatty acids. Although Omega-6 fatty acids are also essential, they are often consumed in larger amounts than Omega-3 fatty acids.
Wondering why? Nowadays, our food contains on average 10 to 20 times more Omega-6 than Omega-3 fatty acids. You find these fatty acids, for example, in sunflower oil, in processed foods, and in meat from factory farming.

Why is the Omega balance so important? An excess of Omega-6 fatty acids can lead to Omega-3 fatty acids being blocked, because both fatty acids use the same metabolic pathways. If all enzymes are "occupied" with Omega-6 fatty acids, the body cannot absorb Omega-3. So it is all the more important to cover them in the right ratio so that the fatty acids do not compete with each other and can fulfill their functions.

4. Covering Omega 3 vegan

Good news: To supply your brain with enough Omega 3, you don’t have to eat fish. Instead, rely on quinoa, barley, almonds, sesame, or green leafy vegetables like spinach, kale, or chard as vegan sources of Omega-3. Legumes, wild vegetables, and herbs also provide you with these valuable fatty acids.

The highest amount of plant-based Omega 3 is found in flaxseeds, hemp seeds, walnuts, and the oils made from them.

And last but not least: algae! Most fish get their high DHA content from their food – algae. And you can cover your Omega-3 fatty acid needs through these as well.
Algae oil is just as effective as Omega 3 from fish. For example, the Journal of the American Dietetic Association published a study in 2008 that examined the effect of algae oil capsules compared to salmon. The results suggested that algae-based DHA capsules and cooked salmon appear to be bioequivalent [1].

The easiest way for you to consume algae? Supplements like our vegan Omega 3 capsules. They provide you with the optimal ratio of DHA to EPA without the fishy aftertaste often found in conventional Omega-3 capsules.

It is also advisable to take Omega-3 capsules with vitamin D – if it is also supplemented – because vitamin D is a fat-soluble vitamin and can thus be better absorbed. Here, it is recommended to use our Once a Day capsules, which supply you with Omega 3 as well as vitamins D3, K2, and B12.

5. When should you take Omega 3 capsules?

Omega 3 capsules make sense when you cannot fully cover your needs through diet or when you are training hard – because during this phase your body requires more nutrients.
The heart and brain are probably the most important organs in humans. Omega-3 fatty acids are essential and contribute to the normal function of these organs. The more balanced the organism and the fitter the heart, the better your body can handle stress. Omega 3 capsules are therefore the perfect companions after an intense workout.

Discover our Omega 3 capsules >>

6. Conclusion

In conclusion, it can be stated that Omega-3 fatty acids offer great added value as they have numerous positive effects on your health. Given the current supply of Omega-3 fatty acids and especially in an energy-reduced diet as well as a vegan/vegetarian lifestyle, supplementation with Omega-3 fatty acids is recommended.

7. Sources

1: Fernandez, E., Chatenoud, L., La Vecchia, C., Negri, E. & Franceschi, S. (1999). Fish consumption and cancer risk. The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 70 (1), 85–90.

2: Carroll, K.K. (1986). Biological effects of fish oils in relation to chronic diseases. Lipids, 21 (12), 731–732.

3: Corder, K.E., Newsham, K.R., McDaniel, J.L., Ezekiel, U.R. & Weiss, E.P. (2016). Effects of Short-Term Docosahexaenoic Acid Supplementation on Markers of Inflammation after Eccentric Strength Exercise in Women. Journal of Sports Science & Medicine, 15 (1), 176–183.

4: DGE, ÖGE, SGE & SVE. (2013). Reference values for nutrient intake (1st ed., 5th revised reprint). Neustadt an der Weinstraße: Umschau Buchverlag.

5: Kim, J. & Lee, J. (2014). A review of nutritional intervention on delayed onset muscle soreness. Part I. Journal of Exercise Rehabilitation, 10 (6), 349–356

6: Jouris, K.B., McDaniel, J.L. & Weiss, E.P. (2011). The Effect of Omega-3 Fatty Acid Supplementation on the Inflammatory Response to eccentric strength exercise. Journal of Sports Science & Medicine, 10 (3), 432–438.

7: Hauner, H. (2013). Profiles on the biofunctionality of food ingredients - ω-3 fatty acids. In D. Haller, T. Grune & G. Rimbach (Eds.), Biofunctionality of food ingredients (pp. 257-266). Berlin: Springer

8: Max-Rubner-Institut (2008). National Consumption Study II: Final report Part 2. Karlsruhe: Max-Rubner-Institut. Accessed on 01.01.2016. Available at http://www.was-esse- ich.de/uploads/media/NVSII_Abschlussbericht_Teil_2.pdf

[5] Gingras A. A, White P. J, Chouinard P. Y (2007) The Journal of Physiology. Long-chain omega-3 fatty acids regulate bovine whole-body protein metabolism by promoting muscle insulin signalling to the Akt-mTOR-S6K1 pathway and insulin sensitivity. [https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17158167]
[6] Dr. med. Jürg Eichhorn. General Medicine FMH. Omega-6 to Omega-3 fatty acid ratio. [http://www.allesroh.at/journal/krebs/6zu3.pdf]