Modern diets deliver too much Omega6 leading to an acute imbalance of somewhere between 1-Omega3 to 14-Omega6 (1:14) or even 1-omega3 to 20-omega6 (1:20). Some doctors suggest that this imbalance may be as high as 1 - 60.
(Simopoulos and Robinson: The Omega Plan, 1998, Harper Collins, p.5 Harris, W. Backgrounder vol 2, July 1997)
As long as the omega 3's and omega 6's in our bodies are in balance they compliment each other. Many doctors now agree that an omega 6 imbalance leads to a marked increase in such dietary disease as cancer, heart attack, stroke, diabetes, arthritis, and skin disorders.
(Simopoulos and Robinson, p.32)
Modern foods are high in omega 6 and low in omega 3. When we couple our modern eating habits with the fact that excess omega 6 is stored in the body as fat, while any unused omega 3 is quickly disposed of by the body, the problem becomes clear.
Many recent studies indicate that it could be. Researchers using lab animals with existing tumors found that diet high in omega 6 made the "... tumors grow faster, larger, and more invasive." (Simopoulos and Robinson, p. 6)
Another study performed in a Los Angeles Veterans Hospital found that the group of men fed a diet high in omega 6 had a mortality rate twice that of men on a traditional diet.
(Pearce and Dayton: The Lancet, 1971, 464-467)
We can trace our human ancestry back 4 million years. For more than 99% of that time humans were hunters and foragers, which established our dietary balance between omega 3 and omega 6 at the ideal proportion of 1:1. Many doctors believe that this balance continued until the mid 1800's when our diet began to fundamentally change. Our present day diets, rich in grains and seeds but poor in marine life, increases the omega 6 presence in our bodies.
"Omega 3 consumption has decreased to one sixth of the level found in our food supply in the 1850's. Omega 6 consumption has doubled in that time drastically changing the ratio of omega 3 to omega 6 in our food supply. This change is reflected in the makeup of our tissue fats and in our health."
(Dr. Edo Erasmus, FATS that Heal, FATS that Kill, 1995 (3rd edition), Alive Books. p.52)
In a recent study, scientists concluded that "... we are now eating 1/10th of the amount of omega 3 required for normal functioning. Alarmingly, 20% of the population has levels so low that they defy detection."
(Dolocek, Grandits, World Rev. Nutr Diet. 1991, 66:205-216)
