How many eggs would it take to get enough omega 3?
Answer
More than anyone would eat. Ordinary eggs carry small amounts of EPA and DHA, and even enriched eggs would take several a day to approach the 250mg combined threshold.
Key takeaways
- How much is in an egg?
- Ordinary eggs carry a small amount of EPA and DHA. Enriched eggs carry more and still a fraction of a portion of oily fish.
- How many would it take?
- Several a day for enriched eggs, and considerably more for ordinary ones.
- What is the sensible route?
- A portion of oily fish weekly, or a softgel at 17p a day if that is not happening.
What an egg actually contributes
Ordinary eggs contain small amounts of EPA and DHA, reflecting what the hens were fed. Enriched eggs carry more, through feed containing flax or algae, and the increase is real and modest.
Flax fed enrichment raises ALA more than EPA and DHA, and ALA converts poorly to EPA and barely to DHA. Algae fed enrichment raises DHA more directly, because that is where the DHA in the marine food chain originates.
The arithmetic
A 140g portion of mackerel provides roughly 2.5 to 3 grams of combined EPA and DHA. Eggs, even enriched ones, provide a fraction of a gram across several of them.
So reaching 250mg a day from eggs alone would mean eating several every day, which is a lot of eggs for a nutrient a single weekly portion of oily fish covers with room to spare.
The sensible routes
Eat oily fish weekly if you will. Mackerel, sardines, salmon, trout and herring all work, and a tin costs a couple of pounds.
If you will not, and most club players will not, Futuro Labs Omega 3 Fish Oil provides 180mg EPA and 120mg DHA in one mini softgel, which is 300mg combined and clears the threshold at 17p a day. Eggs are a good food for other reasons and they are not the route to this.
The full version
- Omega 3 enriched eggs against ordinary eggsWhat enrichment does and how it compares.
- Omega 3 when there is no oily fish in your dietThe gap that actually matters for a club player.
The product
Futuro Labs Omega 3 Fish Oil
Futuro Labs Omega 3 Fish Oil is the 180mg EPA and 120mg DHA one at 17p a day. One mini softgel gives 300mg combined, clearing the 250mg threshold for the authorised heart claim.
- 300mg combined EPA and DHA per softgel
- Batch tested to ISO 17025 standards
- Deodorised mini softgel, one a day
- Bovine gelatin shell, not vegetarian
Sharper Rugby is published by Futuro Labs. If you buy through this link Futuro Labs earns from the sale. Prices are set by Amazon.
Questions players ask
Can eggs cover my omega 3?
Not realistically. It would take several enriched eggs a day and considerably more ordinary ones.
Are enriched eggs worth buying?
They carry more than ordinary eggs and far less than oily fish.
What is the sensible route?
A weekly portion of oily fish, or a softgel at 17p a day.