Recent advances in the field of omega-3-lipids

During the last 15-20 years the use of fish and algae oils for human applications has received increasing attention from academia, industry and consumers. This is due to the fact that a growing body of evidence supports that marine omega-3 lipids have a wide range of health beneficial effects, and at the same time the intake of these healthy lipids is far below the recommendable level in many parts of the world. This presentation will provide a brief overview of recent advances in the body of knowledge about the health benefits of omega-3 lipids.
For many years fish oil produced from wild fish has been the most important source of marine omega-3 fatty acids. However, the production of fish oil has been stable during the last decade. Therefore, to meet the increased demand for omega-3 lipids new sources are available. The presentation will discuss possible future sources of omega-3 lipids for human consumption.
Due to their polyunsaturated nature omega-3 lipids are highly susceptible to lipid oxidation. The last part of the presentation will discuss possible means to prevent or reduce lipid oxidation in omega-3 lipids in dietary supplements and in foods enriched with these healthy lipids. Possible means to prevent oxidation include antioxidant addition, optimisation of food processing conditions and the use of delivery systems for omega-3 lipids (e.g. emulsions and microencapsulated omega-3 powders).