In an effort to up the country’s omega-3 intake, the world’s first natural omega-3 enriched chicken and eggs have been created by farming and food company Devenish.
The omega-3 high foods claim to reduce the risk of a number of serious health conditions, including heart attack, stroke, dementia and depression.
Devenish also emphasise that it is good for the chickens too, and that the enriching process is natural – they simply change their feed.
The aim is to get more people to increase their regular intake of omega-3, which has excellent benefits for our heart, brain and muscle health, as well as our vision.
The main source of omega-3 is often oily fish but ‘many people do not eat fish at all and less than 20% of the world’s population have optimal omega-3 PUFA levels,’ says Professor Alice Stanton of The Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland.
She continues: ‘Omega-3 enriched chicken and eggs offer consumers an attractive alternative to eating oily fish or to the lifelong taking of supplements, with the potential for substantial health benefits.’
The study
Devenish have conducted a world-first clinical trial, delivered by the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland, which monitored the diets of 161 participants. Every individual ate at least three portions of the chicken and eggs every week which had been naturally enriched with omega-3 Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids (PUFA), the same nutrients found in oily fish.
The results revealed an increase in omega-3 in the participants’ blood tests, as well as a positive shift in the omega-3 Index, which measures the amount of omega-3 fatty acids in the red blood cell membranes that affect the heart and brain.
To conclude, the study found that eating omega-3-rich chicken and eggs three times a week halved the number of participants who were previously at a high risk of heart and brain disease.
The chicken and eggs
The chickens reared to create the omega-3 enriched produce were fed OmegaPro, a sustainable and algae-based source of omega-3 PUFA, developed by Devenish.
‘Offering birds a natural and sustainable source of omega-3 PUFA is good for the bird and good for the consumer,’ says Dr. Heather Hayes, Director of Food Innovation with Devenish.
‘Taste panel studies have shown that the omega-3 enriched chicken meat tastes as good, if not better than conventional chicken,’ she continues.
The results of the study were presented at the American Heart Association Scientific Sessions Conference in California on 14 November 2017.
