Brains are fat. That's not a problem, that's just how they are. So it isn't very surprising that brain health is related to dietary fat.

Omega-3 fatty acids protect the brain against Parkinson’s disease, according to a study by Université Laval researchers published in the online edition of the FASEB Journal, the journal of the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology. This study, supervised by Frederic Calon and Francesca Cicchetti, is the first to demonstrate the protective effect of a diet rich in omega-3 fatty acids against Parkinson’s. . .

Analyses revealed that omega-3 fatty acids—in particular DHA (docosahexaenoic acid), a specific type of omega-3—had replaced the omega-6 fatty acids already present in the brains of the mice that had been given omega-3 supplementation.

“This demonstrates both the importance of diet on the brain’s fatty acid composition and the brain’s natural inclination for omega-3 fatty acids,” observes Calon. Since concentrations of other types of omega-3’s had remained similar in both groups of mice, researchers suggest that the protective effect against Parkinson’s comes essentially from DHA.

My emphasis. It's omega-3 fatty acids, plural. There are 3 main types: ALA, EPA and DHA. ALA is what you get from vegetable oils such as flaxseed and walnuts. It has some benefits for health since the human body can convert it to the truly beneficial fats EPA and DHA. This isn't an efficient process - conversion rates are typically single digit - and depends on the rest of the diet to achieve even those low conversion rates. EPA and DHA are available from fish and animal fats. They, in effect, did the conversion already.

Still, those with an agenda want to blur the distinction.

5. How do the fatty acid levels in grass-fed beef and milk compare with levels found in other foods, such as fish?

On a per serving basis, they tend to be lower. For example, the average amount of the omega-3 fatty acids EPA/DHA in a serving of wild salmon is about 1,400 mg, while in our study the average amount of EPA/DHA in a serving of grass-fed steak is about 35 mg (the highest value was 70 mg per serving). Conventional steak had only 18 mg per serving of EPA/DHA. The average amount of the omega-3 fatty acid ALA in a glass of pasture-raised milk is about 80 mg (with one sample at 155 mg). By comparison, a tablespoon of flaxseed has about 2,170 mg and a teaspoon of canola oil has about 435 mg of ALA per serving. Conventional milk has 55 mg of ALA. Nutrition science is complex, and more research is needed on how these fatty acids work and what levels are needed in the diet to produce various health benefits.

Notice the slide from DHA to ALA, as if they were equivalent. And notice the focus on per serving, without mentioning the ratio of omega-3 and other fats. This is from UCS, a political advocacy group rather than honest brokers of scientific information, but they are often quoted and so perpetuate misinformation.

What brains need is DHA, as the research above notes, and the ratio of the omega-3 fatty acid DHA to omega-6 fatty acids is important. The best, most available and sustainable source of this brain food isn't fish oils, it's ruminant fat. The fatty acids are balanced properly, the total fat is low to moderate, and producing the food is environmentally benign. . . if done properly.

As with the human diet, cattle feed or the composition of the ration has a significant effect on the fatty acid profile of the final beef product. Cattle fed primarily grass enhanced the omega-3 content of beef by 60% and also produces a more favorable omega-6 to omega-3 ratio. Conventional beef contains a 4:1 omega 6:3 ratio while grass-only diets produce a 2:1 omega 6:3 ratio . . .

The amount of lipid per serving is highly variable and depends on the feeding regime, genetics and actual cut of beef, however when lipid content is standard (as in hamburger), a serving of grain-fed beef at 10% fat would provide 84 milligrams of omega-3 in a 100 gram serving according to French et al., 2000 (.84 g n-3/100g lipid; 100g serving at 10% lipid = 10g fat/serving; roughly 84 mg n-3). The same hamburger from grass-fed beef would produce 136 mg n-3/serving.

In general, grass-fed cattle are slaughtered at lighter weights than grain fed beef, producing leaner (lower fat) carcasses overall. Thus, whole cuts from grass-fed carcasses will not provide the same quantities of n-3 as described for hamburger at a constant % fat. Leaner carcasses have the advantage of an overall lower percent fat and a higher proportion of favorable unsaturated fatty acids.

Or, what they eat you are. The same is true of fishes of course. Those raised in fish farms on miscellaneous feeds have different fat profiles than wild fishes. But, they have fewer heavy metal pollutants so there are good points and bad points. Besides, wild fishes are in short and declining supply. The world demand is too high.

But what about the concentrations? UCS implies that you can't get much omega-3 from grass fed beef. You'd have to eat a lot of it. Note that they base this on analysis of lean cuts, though grass fed beef is all especially lean. The CSU Chico figures are based on very lean burger, 10% total fat. This is a good thing, not a defect, but if you want therapeutic doses of omega-3 you still don't need to resort to processed fish and vegetable extracts, you can still eat real dairy food.

Drinking just half a pint a day of organic milk as part of a healthy balanced diet gives a useful additional source of this Omega 3 fatty acid, as it could provide approximately 10% of the UK’s Daily Reference Value3 of essential n-3 fatty acid, alpha-linolenic acid.

Organic cheese is an even better source, with a matchbox sized piece of organic cheese providing up to 88% of your RDI of this Omega 3 fatty acid.

Organic isn't the issue of course since you could have certified organic grain fed products and very little health benefit. They assume that organic means grass fed, and that's the real issue. Eat your greens! You can feed your brain with grass fed meats and dairy, and so not need to take supplements, or contribute to over fishing and risk heavy metal contamination. This seems far superior to me. YMMV.