The Global Organization for EPA and DHA Omega 3s (GOED) and a consortium of eight scientific, trade and consumer advocacy organizations have petitioned the U.S. Institute of Medicine (IOM) to convene an expert panel to establish clear dietary reference intakes (DRIs) for the EPA and DHA omega 3 fatty acids.

According to the groups, industry support is urgently needed to (1) provide comments of support for the initiative and (2) encourage legislators to fund the IOM review. GOED has launched a website to provide a convenient method of submitting comments and reaching legislators: www.omega3petition.org.

GOED believes newly established DRIs would have a profound effect on both the industry and consumers. “Omega 3s are one of the fastest growing and largest segments of the food and supplement business, which is why this issue impacts every company within this sector,” said Adam Ismail, executive director of GOED. “In the past decade or so, research on omega 3 fatty acids, EPA and DHA in particular, has evolved to suggest we may be facing a serious public health problem. Most Americans appear to be falling short in their consumption of EPA and DHA, which studies show are important for cardiovascular health and brain development,” added Andrew Shao, PhD, vice president, Scientific and Regulatory Affairs, Council for Responsible Nutrition, and a cosigner of the petition.

A study, in the April issue of PLoS Medicine identified EPA and DHA inadequacy as the sixth leading cause of preventable death in the U.S. Dr. Shao stated: “Taking a simple EPA and DHA-containing product could help fill the nutrition gaps, but until DRIs are established both policy makers and consumers have no way of knowing what the target intakes should be and by how much they’re falling short. By not acting on this important initiative, we place the health of Americans and Canadians at risk.”

The petition comes at an important time, as leaders on Capitol Hill are looking at healthcare reform. Prevention needs to be a primary focus in these discussions, experts argue. An investment of approximately $1-1.5 million is needed from the U.S. and Canadian governments to fund the IOM review. These recommendations could potentially result in billions of dollars in reduced healthcare costs and bring strong credibility to the entire nutrition industry, they claim.

This issue has united the interests of the industry with those of scientific and consumer groups but without funding from Congress, clear DRIs reflecting the sound science behind EPA & DHA will not be established. Organizations and individuals are strongly encouraged to show their interest and support by visiting www.omega3petition.org to submit public comments and find information on writing their legislators.

Organizations supporting the Omega 3 Petition include, Global Organization For EPA And DHA Omega-3s, Council For Responsible Nutrition, International Omega 3 Learning Consortium For Health And Medicine, National Fisheries Institute, National Healthy Mothers, Healthy Babies Coalition, Natural Products Association, Seafood Products Association, Society For Women’s Health Research and the United Natural Products Alliance.