Table 5.

Surveys and key studies reporting data on habitual omega-3 intakes.

Author (year) country	Subjects	Life stage	Design and methods	Habitual intakes (mg/d)	Main findings
Thompson et al. (28) USA	n = 45,347	Mean−37.2 years	NHANES evaluation	EPA 32.6 DHA 64.4 EPA+DHA 96.9 (foods + supplements)	Toddlers, children and adolescents (aged 1–19) had significantly lower n-3 FA intake (p < 0.001) compared to adults and seniors, which remained significant after adjusting for caloric intake
Zhang et al. (29) USA	n = 11,465 CB age. n = 1,180 pregnant women	CB age and pregnancy	NHANES evaluation.	EPA 26.8 DHA 62.2 EPA+DHA 88.1 (foods + supplements)	Over 95% of the sample did not meet the daily intakes of 250 mg EPA and DHA. The majority of U.S. CB age and pregnant women consumed significantly lower amounts of seafood than guidelines recommend.
Bishop and Leblanc (30) Canada	n = 54	Pregnancy (high SES)	Cross-sectional study	66.7 and 64.8% met the FAO/WHO recommendation of 200 mg/d DHA and 300 mg/d DHA + EPA, respectively	The majority of high SES women did not meet n-3 recommendations from food alone. Continued prenatal education on the importance of fish intake and on the addition of ω-3 prenatal supplement is essential.
Nordgren et al. (31) USA	n = 6,478 women CB age. n = 788 pregnant	CB age and pregnancy	NHANES evaluation	CB age: EPA 30.2 DHA 58.3 EPA+DHA 88.5 (foods + supplements) Pregnant: EPA 34.3 DHA 66.4 EPA+DHA 100.8 (foods + supplements)	n-3 FA intake is a concern in pregnant women. Women of CB age in the USA and socioeconomically disadvantaged populations are more susceptible to deficiencies
Eickstaedt et al. (32) New Zealand	n = 596	3rd T of pregnancy	Cross-sectional study	DHA 110 (foods + supplements)	Only 30.9% of participants consumed more than 200 mg/d DHA. Those taking n-3 supplements (19.6%) were 16.5 times more likely to meet recommendations for DHA. Fish and seafood were the main contributors to DHA (84.8%) intakes, yet only 21.7% of women consumed fish at least twice per week.
Richter et al. (33) USA	n = 24,621 individuals.	Across the life-course	NHANES evaluation	EPA + DHA 110 (median) EPA + DHA 170 (mean) (food sources)	n-3 FA intake was highest in men aged 20 years+ and lowest in children and women who are or may become pregnant and/or are lactating. Only 6.2% of the total population reported n-3 FA supplement use.
Sioen et al. (34) Europe	NR	Across the life course	53 studies from 17 different European countries	EPA and/or DHA intakes were only as recommended in 26% of the countries	Intake of n-3 and n-6 PUFAs may be suboptimal in specific population groups in Europe
Forsyth et al. (35) UK	NR	Infants and children aged 6–36 months	FAO Food Balance Sheets and composition data used to generate mean per capita intake estimates	DHA 48.9 (across 76 developing countries)	Global recommendations on DHA in early life need to reflect the specific needs of infants and families living in low income countries
Keim and Branum (36) USA	2496 US children aged 12–60 months	Infants and Toddlers	NHANES evaluation	12–24 months: EPA 5 DHA 19.78 25–36 months: EPA 5.72 DHA 20.5	Children 12–24 months of age had lower total n-3 FA intakes than children 49–60 months of age and the lowest n6: n3 ratio, upon adjustment for energy intake
				37–48 months: EPA 6.41 DHA 20.8 49–60 months: EPA 7.18 DHA 21.0 Overall: 12–60 months: EPA 6.03 DHA 20.47 (food sources)
Papanikolaou et al. (37) USA	n = 14,338	19+ years	NHANES evaluation	Male 19+ EPA 27 DHA 75 Male 19–50 years EPA 28 DHA 77 Male 51 years+ EPA 26 DHA 71 Female 19+ EPA 18 DHA 51 Female 19–50 years EPA 18 DHA 48 Female 51 years+ EPA 19 DHA 54	Males had higher (p < 0.05) intake of EPA and DHA from foods and dietary supplements relative to females and older adults had higher intakes of EPA, but not DHA compared to younger adults

CB, childbearing; EPA, eicosapentaenoic acid; DHA, docosahexaenoic acid; FA, fatty acid; NHANES, National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey; NR, not reported; SES, Socio-economic status; T, trimester.