The High Omega 3 Low Omega 6 Regimen
What are Omega 3 and Omega 6?
Omega 3 and omega 6 are both fats. Specifically, they are polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA).
It’s important to be mindful of how much omega 3 and omega 6 we eat and drink, because these fats are incorporated into all the cells of the body, both normal and cancer cells. After incorporating into the cell, it affects the function of the cell - for better or for worse.
The typical modern day diet is very high in omega 6 fats. There can easily be 25-50 times more omega 6 compared to omega 3 in our diet.
The problem with omega 6 is it causes inflammation. Inflammation is one underlying cause behind many health issues: cancer, diabetes, high cholesterol, autoimmune diseases, mental diseases.
Omega 3, on the other hand, is anti-inflammatory and counteracts omega 6. The molecular mechanisms of omega 3 have been investigated, and it supports omega 3’s beneficial effect in cancer and other inflammatory diseases. This review article highlights some of omega 3’s mechanisms in cancer.
Where are Omega 3 and Omega 6 found?
Omega 6 is found in most cooking oils, nuts and seeds, and in the fat of most meats.
Omega 3 is abundant in salmon, sardines and other fatty fish in the form of DHA (docosahexaenoic acid) and EPA (eicosapentaenoic acid). Flaxseed and chia seeds are also high in omega 3, in the form of ALA (alpha-linolenic acid).
For the omega 3 and omega 6 content in various foods, see this table.
What is the High Omega 3/ Low Omega 6 regimen?
This regimen involves having a diet that is higher in omega 3 compared to omega 6.
The omega 6 oils in the diet are kept low. Since it is difficult to attain high levels of omega 3 (DHA + EPA) solely from the diet, omega 3 supplements (fish oil and DHA) are taken to raise the level of omega 3.
This strategy is based on a case report of Patient DH, who had many large metastatic sarcoma tumors in his lungs. He only took very high omega 3 supplementation (15g omega 3) and low amounts of omega 6 in his diet (10g omega 6).
All his tumors shrank after 10 years on this regimen. As of May 2014, from personal communication with him, he has been cancer-free for more than 3 years. Complete remission on high omega 3 and low omega 6 alone!
For myself, since starting this regimen with higher amounts of omega 3, I have not had any new tumors for 9 months as of April 2014, after having a pattern of progressing metastatic lung tumors.
For more details comparing the high omega 3/ low omega 6 regimen and results of Patient DH and myself, see this table.
The High Omega 3/ Low Omega 6 Regimen
A. Warnings and Possible Side Effects
1) Bleeding risk: Platelet function will decrease with high fish oil supplementation.
**Do not take high omega 3 if:
- taking blood thinning medication such as warfarin, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAID)).
- taking medications that cannot be taken with warfarin or non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs).
- will have surgery or procedure that has a bleeding risk.
Stop fish oil + DHA 2 weeks to 1 month before procedure with bleeding risk.
Consult with doctor and carefully monitor platelet function with PFA 100 test (Platelet Function Analyzer).
The usual PT/INR test (Prothrombin Time and International Normalized Ratio) for platelet function will not detect the decreased platelet function.
2) Hard to digest fish oil + DHA: gas, bloating, stomach discomfort
To avoid this, I take the fish oil + DHA right after a full meal, and I don't sit down or lie down right after taking the fish oil/ DHA.
For more sensitive stomachs, another method is to take the fish oil with food. Such as eating bread with fish oil poured on top. This may help with the emulsification and subsequent digestion of the fish oil.
3) Bruising:
I notice I get bruises more easily on this regimen. If I don't have any procedures coming up, I'm not concerned.
B. Supplementation
I take about 24 g total of omega 3 a day through fish oil and DHA, which is algae oil.
The fish oil I take a concentrated liquid fish oil. Liquid fish oil is usually fresher than the pills. Also with this concentrated fish oil, I don't need to take large amounts of it to attain high concentrations. The brand I use is Carlson's Medomega, which has equal ratio of EPA to DHA.
DHA is the building block for the brain, and also has evidence of killing tumor directly.
Everyday I take:
after lunch: 4 teaspoons of Medomega liquid fish oil + 10 pills of DHA Neuromins
after dinner: 4 teaspoons of Medomega liquid fish oil + 10 pills of DHA Neuromins
Where to buy:
, from - Any fish oil with no heavy metals and high enough concentration of EPA + DHA is OK.
, from C. Diet
Since omega 6 oils counteract the good effect omega 3 oils, take less omega 6 than omega 3.
1. Calculate your daily Omega 6 intake for a week.
I restrict my daily diet to 10 g omega 6. For about a week, I calculated the omega 6 of everything that went into my mouth: drinks, food and cooking oil that was used for preparing my food. I obtain the omega 6 content of foods from nutritiondata.self.com. To make it easier to calculate the omega 6, I compiled the omega 6 of common foods in this table.
If the nutritiondata website doesn’t have the food you are interested in, you can look at the nutrition facts on the food label. For more on how to calculate omega 6 from food labels: How to Approximate Omega 6 from Food Labels
After calculating the omega 6 for a week, you will get a better sense of what foods in your diet are high in omega 6. When you have a good sense of what kind of diet will keep your omega 6 low, you won’t need to calculate your omega 6 intake.
2. Decide what high omega 6 foods to avoid.
I decided to avoid:
1) oils (apart from limited amounts of olive oil, coconut oil, canola oil, butter which are low in omega 6)
2) nuts and seeds (apart from macadamia, chia seeds and flaxseeds)
3) soy products (when soybeans are concentrated into tofu or soymilk, the omega 6 is high)
4) fat and skin from meat
5) eating out (high amounts of omega 6 oils are used for restaurant cooking) When I do eat out, I choose low omega 6 options.
3. Find low omega 6 alternatives to foods you like to eat.
A low omega 6 diet can be delicious too!
For example, I like to eat chips. However, most chips are fried with high omega 6 oils, such as sunflower or safflower oil. In looking for low omega 6 alternatives, I found these chips that are baked instead, using very low amounts of oil. It’s still crispy and delicious, but with almost 17x lower omega 6 than regular chips!
18 Lay’s Potato chips (1oz) = 8.5g Omega 6
20 Kettle brand “Real Sliced Potatoes” (1oz) = 0.5g Omega 6
I also stopped eating mayonnaise, which is very high in omega 6 due to the soybean oil and egg yolks in it. When eating out, instead of mayo on my sandwiches, I ask for mustard instead. I also avoid tuna salad or chicken salad sandwiches, which are made with mayo.
1 tablespoon mayonnaise = 5.18g Omega 6
1 tablespoon mustard = 0.07g Omega 6
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