Omega 3 fatty acids are polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) and are mainly found in plants and seafood (fish). Omega 3 fatty acids include DHA and EPA. Human body is not capable of producing these fatty acids. Therefore, they have to be obtained from dietary sources. They are called essential fatty acids (EFA).

Omega 3 fatty acids are major components of brain cells and thus crucial for proper functioning of the nervous system. Deficiency of omega 3 fatty acids has been associated with multitude brain disorders such as depression, learning skills, memory loss.

Fish, for example, eel, lamprey and tuna, have the highest omega 3 fatty acid (EPA).

Below is a list of 300 food items (Table 1 - 6) rich in omega 3 fatty acids and their EPA content. The foods are ordered from high to low EPA content. The food items are from the Nordic region and are analysed by the Finish National Public Health Institute.

Table 1: List of seafoods (fish) high in omega 3 fatty acid EPA (mg/100 grams)

RankOmega 3 fatty acid EPA food sourcesOmega 3 fatty acid EPA content (mg /100 grams food portion)
1 Eel 1300
2 Lamprey 1300
3 Tuna, fried 1014
4 Herring salted 969
5 Tuna 900
6 Herring pickled, average 872
7 Mackerel smoked or canned in water 842
8 Sardine average, in oil and tomato sauce 788
9 Fish fatty smoked 698
10 Herring with garlic or mustard sauce 654
11 Caviar dark roe of sturgeon 606
12 Roe average 606
13 Anchovy 590
14 Roe average salted 576
15 Vendace salted lake fish 533
16 Mussel in water 444
17 Halibut 440
18 Rainbow trout, fillet in oven low-fat 431
19 Rainbow trout fillet 421
20 Baltic herring fillet 413
21 Baltic herring fillet, in oven 401
22 Rainbow trout fillet with cream 397
23 Rainbow trout fillet, creme for food preparation 397
24 Rainbow trout, fillet cold smoked 389
25 Salmon, fried fillet 375
26 Redfish 373
27 Redfish frozen 373
28 Rainbow trout, fillet 371
29 Sushi with tuna, without seaweed 370
30 Rainbow trout 369
31 Rainbow trout sea, fillet 365
32 Salmon in oil 362
33 Rainbow trout, fillet salted 348
34 Salmon 345
35 Salmon fillet 345
36 Trout 345
37 Bream smoked 326
38 Flounder, fried 320
39 Roe paste 315
40 Fish low-fat smoked 314
41 Salmon, breaded, fried 308
42 Rainbow trout fillet with sour cream 305
43 Lavaret smoked 305
44 Rainbow trout carpaccio 302
45 Roe sauce, creme fraiche 295
46 Flounder 284
47 Whitefish, pollan, lavaret 263
48 Vendace smoked lake fish 253
49 Baltic herring 250
50 Rainbow trout whole, average 241