Vegan Nutrition with Brenda Davis

Brenda Davis is a registered dietitian in private practice. She is the past Chair of the Vegetarian Nutrition Dietetic Practice Group of the American Dietetic Association. Brenda is co-author of the international best seller, Becoming Vegetarian, and highly acclaimed Becoming Vegan. Brenda is an internationally recognized speaker. She has worked as a public health nutritionist, a clinical nutrition specialist, nutrition consultant and academic nutrition instructor.

Question:

What are good sources of Omega fatty acids and how often should I ensure my child is getting them?

Answer:

There are two essential fatty acids - linoleic acid (an omega-6 fatty acid) and alpha-linolenic acid (an omega-3 fatty acid). These fatty acids are converted in the body to very important long chain fatty acids (linoleic acid is converted to GLA and AA and alpha-linoleic acid to DHA and EPA). Most people get too much omega-6 fatty acids and not enough omega-3 fatty acids. This imbalance may result in poor brain development and reduced visual acuity in infants, and may contribute chronic diseases, immune/inflammatory disorders and psychological disorders.

Linoleic acid (omega-6 fatty acids) is found mainly in seed oils (sunflower, safflower, sesame, grape), corn oil, soy and grains. Alpha-linolenic acid (omega-3 fatty acids) is found mainly in flaxseeds, hempseeds, greens, canola oil, walnuts and soy. Few plant foods contain long chain fatty acids (with the exception of some algae and seaweed, although these foods generally contain very small amounts). Thus, vegans get almost all their long chain fatty acids from conversion of the essential fatty acids. This conversion is very limited for omega-3 fatty acids - about 4-10% for EPA and about 2-5% for DHA. High intakes of omega-6 fatty acids can reduce the conversion by up to 50%.

Now back to the original question - how do we insure sufficient essential fatty acids for children?

First, breastfeed your baby! Breast milk contains the best balance of essential fatty acids and long chain omega-3 fatty acids for infants. It is important that pregnant and lactating vegan mothers get plenty of omega-3 fatty acids in their diet. I would recommend a microalgae DHA supplement of 200-300 mg/day during this time (vegans generally have low levels of DHA in their breast milk). After weaning, there are a number of ways of insuring sufficient essential fatty acids for your child:

1. Minimize the use of foods rich in trans fatty acids (found in processed foods containing hydrogenated vegetable oils).
2. Limit your use of omega-6-rich oils (sunflower, safflower, corn, sesame, soy and grapeseed).
3. Select foods rich in monounsaturated fat as the primary fat sources - nuts (butters and creams for small children), olives, olive oil and avocados.
4. Include a good source of omega-3 fatty acids in the diet every day. A teaspoon of flax oil (2.5 grams of alpha-linolenic acid) is plenty.
5. Consider providing a direct source of EPA and DHA. Seaweeds very tremendously in there content, but generally contain negligible amounts. The microalgae used by Martek and OmegaTech is rich in DHA - 100 mg/day would be sufficient. Unfortunately, these supplements are only available in gel caps, but this will soon change.

Please refer to chapter 4 in Becoming Vegan for detailed information on this topic.

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