The Right Way to Get Your Omega-3s and -6s

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The case against an overload of omega-6s isn't airtight, however. A study of some 2,200 people published in the journal Hypertension in July showed a relationship between high intake of omega-6, mostly from vegetable oils, and slightly reduced blood pressure. "Omega-6 fatty acids are not unhealthy," says Robert Eckel, past president of the American Heart Association. "In animals," he says, "they may be precursors to inflammatory molecules, [but in people] the clinical evidence for harm just isn't there." Other experts believe we can avoid a debate over omega-6 altogether. Says cardiologist Stephen Nicholls of the Cleveland Clinic: "Let's praise the virtues of [omega]-3 rather than get bogged down in the issues of [omega]-6."

Supermarket selections. But conscientious consumers are still left to make decisions. Last month, in the Journal of the American Dietetic Association, researchers led by Chilton analyzed the omega-3-to-omega-6 ratios in commonly eaten fish and found that farmed tilapia and farmed catfish skew considerably toward omega-6 and were low in omega-3. By comparison, farmed salmon and trout have far more favorable ratios. "Not all fish are made the same," Nicholls notes.

Bill Lands, a retired biochemist living in Maryland, knows how to tell the difference. He created a free, albeit clunky, computer program called Keep It Managed that details omega fat levels in various foods. Kidney and pinto beans trump chickpeas, for example, and winter squash, spinach, broccoli, and cauliflower beat corn. Alaskan king crab and shrimp? More omega-3 than -6. So Lands, 78, eats seafood nearly every night.