The Fatty Acid Profile: Dietary Intake and Beyond

Summary

Fatty acid testing can provide a great deal of information allowing for individualized interventions. Varying patterns can help to identify not only essential fatty acid deficiency or excess, but also signs of insulin resistance, hypertriglyceridemia, proinflammation, or omega-3 dominance. Metametrix

This content was created by the Metametrix Institute

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The Fatty Acid Profile: Dietary Intake and Beyond (PDF) July 2006

Details

Metametrix has several tests that evaluate fatty acid levels and ratios, including plasma, erythrocytes, and bloodspot. The erythrocyte and plasma tests include extensive data on individual fatty acids, including; polyunsaturated, monounsaturated, saturated, and trans fatty acid levels, as well as several ratios including; LA/DGLA, AA/EPA, EPA/DGLA, and Triene/Tetraene. The easy-to-use bloodspot test can be collected by the patient and measures key omega-3 and omega-6 PUFAs, as well as trans fats, and calculates indicators to establish an optimal balance. Fatty acid profiles are an ideal way to track patient progress or response to treatment and can help clinicians determine if he/she is giving too much or too little fatty acid supplementation. Clinical management of fatty acid supplementation is aided by testing for antioxidant status as well. This can be done by measuring markers of oxidant damage, such as lipid peroxides and urinary 8-hydroxy-2'-deoxyguanosine. Simply having these pieces of information can make a significant difference in your ability to guide your patient in diet and supplementation recommendations while modulating their inflammatory cytokines.