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A lthough the fish-derived, long-chain omega-3 fatty acids (n-3 FA) may be considered "gifts from the sea" for cardiovascular health, the role of the land (or plant) -based n-3 FA ␣-linolenic acid (ALA) has been less clear.ALA is the 18-carbon, 3-double bond (C18:3n-3) precursor to eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA; C20:5n-3) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA; C22:6n-3), the latter 2 being the predominant n-3 FA in fish oils.ALA is found in certain plant oils, most notably flaxseed oil (where it constitutes Ϸ50% of total FA) and in canola oil (Ϸ9%), unhydrogenated soybean (salad dressing) oil (Ϸ7%), hydrogenated soybean oil (Ϸ3%), and olive oil (Ϸ1%).According to National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) III data, consumption in the United States currently averages Ϸ1.3 g/d.
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William S. Harris (2005) studied this question.
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