The health benefits associated with consuming Omega-3 oils have been highlighted in a new Federal Government guide to the nutritional values of foods.
According to the Director of CSIRO’s Food Futures Flagship, Dr Bruce Lee, the Department of Health and Ageing’s guide to Nutrient Reference Values for Australia and New Zealand (NRVs) endorses the Flagship’s efforts to develop sustainable sources of long-chain Omega-3 oils.
“With the need for people to increase their daily intake of long-chain Omega-3 oils, the Flagship welcomes the new NRV guidelines,” Dr Lee says.
Nutritional authorities suggest a dietary target of at least 430mg for women and 610mg for men of long-chain Omega-3, including EPA (eicosapentaenoic acid) and DHA (docosa-hexaenoic acid), to reduce the risk of chronic disease. Dietary surveys show that most Australians consume a fraction of this amount.
“With the need for people to increase their daily intake of long-chain Omega-3 oils, the Flagship welcomes the new NRV guidelines.”
– Dr Bruce Lee
The health benefits of Omega-3 oils have been known for many years.
Dr Mahinda Abeywardena, principal scientist with the Food Futures Flagship says: “It is 30 years since the original observation that diets high in long-chain Omega-3 oils may be associated with cardiovascular health benefits.
“In addition to a wealth of supporting evidence for this claim, current knowledge also assigns several other benefits of Omega-3 oils including foetal and early childhood growth and development, anti-inflammatory as well as possible benefits on neuropsychiatric disorders – cognition, Alzheimer’s disease, mood and depression.”
Making these valuable oils more readily available to the community is a major research project for the Flagship. In a world first, the Flagship recently developed land-based plants that produce DHA – a healthy Omega-3 oil component normally only available from fish sources.
“The Food Futures Flagship is committed on a number of research fronts to developing new and sustainable sources of Omega-3 oils,” Dr Lee says.
“Showing that plants can produce DHA in their seeds is a major scientific accomplishment. It is an important first step towards improving human nutrition and reducing pressure on declining fish resources worldwide.”
In tandem with its research to produce Omega-3 oils in crops, the Flagship is also assessing oil-rich marine microalgae for their commercial potential. Marine microalgae – the natural Omega-3 factories of the sea – are the source of Omega-3 oils found in fish.
Find out more about Food Futures Flagship.
Editor's Note: Original news release can be found here.
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