Why Flax Oil?

Like most parents, you probably want your children to be both bright and well-behaved. That’s why in addition to a quality, chewable, multiple vitamin/mineral formula, you may want to make sure that your children receive additional important nutrients from flaxseed oil. Thanks to a mounting body of research, we are more confident than ever that flax offers important help in supporting IQ development and good behavior.

Promote IQ, Improve Behavior, and Enhance Focus in Children with Flax Oil

Omega-3 Fatty Acids and Children’s IQ and Behavior

Two types of fatty acids are considered essential to the human body – Omega-3 and Omega-6. These fatty acids cannot be synthesized in the body and must be obtained from the diet, hence they are called “essential fatty acids.”

Generally, children receive adequate amounts of the Omega-6 fatty acids, but their diets are woefully lacking in Omega-3 fatty acids. Whereas vegetable oils are high in Omega-6s, flaxseed oil is high in Omega-3 fatty acids, particularly the parent compound of all Omega-3 fatty acids, alpha-linolenic acid.

The Omega-6 fatty acids are distributed evenly in most tissues; however, Omega-3 fatty acids are concentrated in only a few select tissues including the brain. Learning specialists now believe Omega-3 fatty acid deficiency is associated with childhood behavioral problems.

The evidence is becoming more and more persuasive:

• In 1981, researchers first hypothesized that children with difficulty focusing and staying still may have reduced nutritional status of essential fatty acids (EFAs) because they experienced greater thirst (a symptom of EFA deficiency) compared to regular children.
• These results were confirmed in 1983. Researchers who examined children’s blood levels for EFAs found they were significantly lower in poorly behaved children compared to normal children.
• In 1987, researchers further documented that 48 children who had trouble with focus and behavior reported significantly greater thirst, more frequent urination, and more health and learning problems than regular children. Sure enough, these kids had significantly lower levels of two Omega-6 fatty acids and one Omega-3 fatty acid than their well-adjusted peers.
• In a 1995 study comparing essential fatty acid levels of two groups of boys – one with difficulty remaining calm and focused to one without – researchers found significantly lower levels of EPA and DHA (two key Omega-3 fatty acids synthesized from alpha-linolenic acid contained in flax) in the inattentive boys.
• In 1996, Laura J. Stevens, of the Department of Foods and Nutrition, Purdue University, and co-investigators published an important paper in Physiology & Behavior, which found that boys with lower levels of Omega-3 fatty acids in their blood showed more problems with behavior, learning, and health than those with higher levels.
• Donald Rudin M.D., a Harvard-trained doctor who served as director of the Department of Molecular Biology at the Eastern Pennsylvania Psychiatric Institute for 23 years, and Ms. Clara Felix, a nutritionist, have noted that children who have difficulty remaining calm and attentive also tend to have more inflammation-related health problems than regular kids. Rudin and Felix, co-authors of the book, Omega-3 Oils; A Practical Guide, claim that these types of behavioral problems have arisen among children because our modern diets are deficient in Omega-3 fatty acids.

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How Omega-3 Fatty Acids Help Children

All cells throughout the human body are enveloped by membranes composed chiefly of EFAs in the form of phospholipids, notes Michael Murray, N.D. Phospholipids play a major role in determining the integrity and fluidity of cell membranes.

It is widely believed that cells are genetically programmed to selectively incorporate the fatty acids they need to maintain optimal function. In actuality, what becomes incorporated into the cell membranes is determined primarily by diet – not genes. The average American child’s diet - which is filled with fast foods and prepackaged meals containing high amounts of saturated fat, cholesterol, and trans fats from beef, dairy, and hydrogenated oils – causes cell membranes to become stiff. This is in stark contrast to the fluid membranes of a child consuming optimal levels of EFAs. Therefore, unhealthy fats interfere with the optimal composition of phospholipids in cell membranes.

A phospholipid composed of a saturated fat or trans fat differs considerably in structure from a phospholipid composed of an EFA, notes Dr. Murray. In addition, there are differences between the structure of membrane composed of Omega-3 oil versus one composed of Omega-6 oil.

Up to 80 percent of the fatty acids in the cerebral cortex of the brain should be composed of Omega-3 fatty acids.

“A relative deficiency of essential fatty acids in cellular membranes makes it virtually impossible for the cell membrane to perform its vital functions,” says Dr. Murray. Because the brain is the richest source of phospholipids in the human body and accurate nerve cell function is critically dependent on proper membrane fluidity, itonly makes sense that alterations in membrane fluidity could dramatically impact behavior, mood, and mental function, he adds. In addition, studies have shown that biophysical properties, including fluidity of synaptic membranes, directly influence neurotransmitter synthesis, signal transduction, uptake of serotonin and other neurotransmitters, and neurotransmitter binding. All of these factors have been implicated in negative mood and other psychological issues in children.

• Do not think of flax oil as a cure for a disease. Rather, flax oil offers nutritional factors vital for healthy childhood behavioral development.
• While all children who have trouble focusing and sitting still are not deficient in Omega-3 fatty acids, an Omega-3 deficiency may play a role in the behavior issues of many children.
• Parents of children with focus and behavior problems, as well as adults struggling with the same issues, who wish to utilize Omega-3 fatty acids as a method of modifying their behavior, should use both flax and seafood sources of Omega-3. Flax seed oil provides alpha-linolenic acid (ALA), the master Omega-3 fatty acid from which other Omega-3 fatty acids are synthesized. Seafood provides docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), which appears to be a vital Omega-3 fat for supporting healthy childhood neurological function. While the rate of conversion of ALA to DHA is low, ALA may be important to behavioral improvements within its own rite. Therefore, a combination of flax and seafood is best.

1. Neuringer, M. & Conner, W.E. N-3 fatty acids in the brain and retina: evidence for their essentiality. Nutrition Reviews, 1985; 44: 285-294.
2. Tinoco, J. Dietary requirement and function of alpha-linolenic acid in animals. Prog. Lipid. Res, 1982; 21: 1-45.
3. Enslen, M., et al. Effect of low intake of n-3 fatty acids during the development of brain phospholipid fatty acid composition and exploratory behavior in rats. Lipids, 1991; 26: 203-208.
4. Reisbick, S., et al. Home cage behavior or rhesus monkeys with long-term deficiency of omega-3 fatty acids. Physiol. Behav., 1994; 55: 231-239.
5. Colquhoun, I. & Bunday, S. A lack of essential fatty acids as a possible cause of hyperactivity in children. Med. Hypotheses, 1981; 7: 673-679.
6. Mitchell, E.A., et al. Essential fatty acids and maladjusted behaviour in children. Prostaglandins Leukot Med, 1983; 12(3):281-7.
7. Mitchell, E., et al. Clinical characteristics and serum essential fatty acid levels in hyperactive children. Clin. Pediatr., 1987; 26: 406-411.
8. Stevens, L., et al. Essential fatty acid metabolism in boys with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 1995; 62: 000-000.
9. Stevens, L., et al. Omega-3 fatty acids in boys with behavior, learning, and health problems. Physiology & Behavior, 1996.

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