In a large community-based study, researchers at Fatty Acid Research Institute observed weak but statistically significant inverse associations between several types of inflammatory biomarkers with omega-6 fatty acids.
This image shows Oenothera biennis, a flower that produces an oil containing a high content of linolenic acid. Image credit: Georg Slickers / CC BY-SA 4.0.
“Chronic inflammation is recognized as an important risk factor for a variety of health disorders,” said Fatty Acid Research Institute’s president William Harris and his colleagues.
“Omega-6 fatty acids, particularly linoleic (LA) and arachidonic acid (AA), have been shown to be either pro- or anti-inflammatory, and researchers have advocated both for and against reducing their dietary intake.”
The authors relied on data from the Framingham Offspring Study, a well-known research cohort from the Boston area.
The Framingham Offspring Study is a landmark longitudinal research initiative that follows the children of participants in the original Framingham Heart Study to investigate genetic and lifestyle factors influencing cardiovascular and metabolic health.
Launched in 1971, it has provided decades of valuable insights into chronic disease risk and prevention.
The cohort’s rigor and continuity make it one of the most trusted sources for understanding long-term health trajectories.
This was a cross-sectional study, meaning that the LA and AA levels were measured in the same blood samples as the 10 inflammation-related biomarkers in 2,700 individuals.
The relationships between the levels of these two omega-6 fatty acids and 10 separate blood/urine biomarkers of inflammation and oxidative stress were statistically evaluated.
After adjusting (controlling statistically) for multiple other potentially confounding factors (age, race, sex, smoking, blood lipid levels, blood pressure, body weight, etc.), the researchers found that higher LA levels were associated with statistically significantly lower levels of five of the 10 biomarkers, and in no case was higher LA related to higher levels of any biomarker.
For AA, higher levels were linked with lower concentrations of four markers, and, like LA, there were no statistically significant associations with higher levels of inflammation/oxidation.
“These new data show clearly that people who have the highest levels of LA (and AA) in their blood are in a less inflammatory state than people with lower levels,” Dr. Harris said.
“This finding is exactly the opposite of what one would expect if omega-6 fatty acids were ‘proinflammatory’ — in fact, they appear to be anti-inflammatory.”
“In the flurry of news stories about the harms of seed oils — the primary sources of LA in the diet — many voices are calling for reducing Americans’ intakes of LA.”
“This is not a science-based recommendation, and this study — in addition to many more — point in precisely the opposite direction: instead of lowering LA intakes, raising intakes appears to be a healthier recommendation.”
“These findings contradict a narrative, not previous research findings.”
“There are many studies in the medical literature that are consistent with our findings here.”
The study was published June 22 in the journal Nutrients.
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Heidi T.M. Lai et al. 2025. Red Blood Cell Omega-6 Fatty Acids and Biomarkers of Inflammation in the Framingham Offspring Study. Nutrients 17 (13): 2076; doi: 10.3390/nu17132076