Omega 3's & The Brain

Omega 3 fatty acids, specifically docosohexaenoic acid (DHA), are crucial to brain health and brain injury recovery. People who regularly took omega 3-DHA before a brain injury will have built up resilience to neural damage—they will therefore recover faster. People who take omega 3-DHA after an injury will benefit from increased neural repair, increased neural growth, and decreased inflammation—they too will recover faster.

Omega 3-DHA can also prevent the development of mood disorders such as:

• Depression
• Mania
• Anxiety
• Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)

And omega 3-DHA may help:

• Reduce the desire for alcohol
• Improve memory and concentration
• Lower the risk of suicide

Our bodies don’t produce enough DHA, so we must consume it through either food or supplements. Foods that are abundant in DHA include sardines, flax seeds, walnuts, salmon, and soybeans. Most people don’t eat enough DHA-rich foods and will need to take an omega 3 supplement that has a high amount of DHA.

How much should you take?

It’s hard to overdose on DHA, so you can safely take a lot. People who have had a brain injury (of any severity) and people who are at a higher risk of brain injury should aim for higher doses. How much is a lot?

Healthy adults should take at least 500 milligrams (mg) of DHA daily (healthy kids 250 mg). So, a person who needs more should aim for at least 800 mg daily. A 2011 animal study measured the benefits of DHA in these 3 dosage groups:

• 3 mg per kg (~1.5 mg per lb)
• 12 mg per kg (~5.5 mg per lb)
• 40 mg per kg (~18 mg per lb)

All 3 amounts of DHA reduced brain injury, but the highest dose had the most significant effect. If you translate the highest dose for a person who weighs 68 kg (150 lbs), that would be almost 3,000 mg of DHA!

Omega 3 supplements contain different amounts of DHA, ranging from around 100-500 mg (look specifically for the amount of DHA, not the overall mg in the capsule). But don’t go crazy—take an amount that balances cost against benefit. You can also supplement with omega 3-enriched foods (i.e. milk, eggs, yogurt), but the food labels usually don’t specify how much DHA there is.

As always, please consult with your medical team before taking any supplement.