9 Ways to Sneak in More Omega-3s

Find more

Today, omega-3s seem to be just about everywhere. Just push your cart through the aisles of any supermarket and you'll find omega-3s added to all manner of foods and beverages, including breakfast cereals, eggs, orange juice, and margarine. Even some pet foods have them! It shows how far these beneficial fats have come, capturing the attention of nutrition scientists and food manufacturers alike.

Good-for-you fats

The potential health benefits of omega-3s first came to light in the mid-1970s, when a Danish research team conducted observational studies of Greenland Inuits. This population showed a very low rate of heart disease, which the researchers attributed to their traditional diet rich in fish.

Since then, other observational studies have drawn a similar conclusion: Populations that eat fish on a regular basis, such as native Alaskans and Japanese, have low rates of death from heart disease. Omega-3s appear to protect the heart by reducing inflammation, preventing the blood clots that can cause heart attacks, slowing a rapid heartbeat, and relaxing the blood vessels so blood can flow freely.

Omega-3s are fats of the unsaturated variety—a category that also includes nut oils and unprocessed vegetable oils. Omega-6s, found in vegetable oils as well as breakfast cereals and whole-grain breads, come under the "unsaturated" umbrella as well. Though our bodies need both kinds of omegas, we tend to eat them in disproportionate amounts—roughly 15 to 17 times more 6s than 3s. The ratio of the two should be just about equal. When it isn't, and it stays out of sync for a prolonged period, it can pave the way to an assortment of health problems, including heart arrhythmias, depression, and certain autoimmune and inflammatory diseases.

Get your 3s all day long

The Diabetes DTOUR Diet, a science-backed eating plan to fight belly fat, lower blood sugar, and reduce the risk of developing diabetes and its complications, is designed to satisfy your body's omega-3 needs—as well as your taste buds! In fact, omega-3s, along with calcium, vitamin D, and fiber, make up DTOUR's "Fat-Fighting Four" supernutrients. New research shows that these nutrients are powerful at balancing blood sugar and encouraging weight loss.

On the DTOUR Diet, your daily dose is spread across each day's menu, so you get just enough at every meal and snack. To help ease you into the omega-3 habit, we've compiled a list of our favorite tips and techniques for taking advantage of these beneficial fats.

Take them for a test drive now, before you embark on DTOUR. They'll also serve as helpful guideposts while you're on the plan, helping you to stay the course while you're slimming down:

Rebalance your dietary ratio of omega-3s to omega-6s. It's simple: As you increase your intake of omega-3-rich foods, cut way back on processed foods, refined grains, and supermarket cooking oils—the chief sources of omega-6s in the average diet.

Dress up your greens. Munch a DTOUR salad every day—a potent combo of leafy greens and veggies dressed with walnut, canola, or flaxseed oil and a sprinkling of sesame seeds. Click here for more delicious and filling salad recipe ideas.

Eat salmon or another type of coldwater fish two or three times a week. You'll get those beneficial omega-3s—and if the fish is replacing red meat in your diet, you'll probably be consuming less saturated fat.

Have a sandwich. For lunch, help yourself to a tuna sandwich. Make your tuna with canola oil mayo.

Try tofu—really! Tofu and other products made with soybeans are good sources of omega-3s. You can always add tofu to stir-fries, but for variety, try puréeing it with peanut butter for a fluffy sandwich spread or blending soft tofu with a banana for a breakfast smoothie.

Add a dash of flax. Add 1 1/2 tablespoons of ground flaxseed or 1 teaspoon of flaxseed oil to your diet every day. You can mix the seeds into low-fat cottage cheese or the oil into a smoothie.

Cook with canola oil. Use canola oil to cook and flaxseed oil for salad dressings. (Flaxseed oil breaks down when it's heated, so it's not good for cooking.)

Eat walnuts. As nuts go, they're the only kind rich in omega-3s. They may be good for the heart, too. When researchers in Spain asked a group of volunteers to eat 8 to 13 walnuts a day in tandem with a heart-healthy diet, this group showed 64 percent stronger artery-pumping action and 20 percent fewer of the gunky molecules that lead to atherosclerotic plaque than did a control group who followed the heart-healthy diet but skipped the nuts.

Trade up. Consider switching to eggs enriched with omega-3s. Many producers now add sources of omega-3 fats, such as flaxseed and canola oil, to the hens' feed to increase the healthy fats in their eggs. Look for cartons that carry the USDA-certified label; these eggs have been inspected, so you can feel confident that their claims (such as "omega-3 enhanced") are legit.

Food sources of ALA

You can boost your daily intake of omega-3s by consuming more ALA, which your body converts to omega-3s. Among the best sources: