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Omega-3 Potential Benefit to Those with ALS

Fill Your Plate

07.12.2024

By Heide Kennedy, Arizona Farm Bureau Communications Intern

A recent Drink One For Dane Event at Dutch Bros.

For the past two years, I’ve been working at a Dutch Bros coffee shop. One thing that is unique about Dutch Bros aside from its incredibly huge menu is that they frequently do “Give-Back Days” where a certain amount of money from each drink sold goes to a particular charity. The largest Give-Back Day that they do is called Drink One for Dane, in honor of one of the founders who died of the disease, Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), formerly known as Lou Gehrig’s disease. This neurological disorder affects motor neurons, the nerve cells in the brain, and the spinal cord that control voluntary muscle movement and breathing.

On Dutch Bros Give Back Days, all of the money made at every stand within the company is donated to further the research for a cure for ALS.

As mentioned earlier, ALS is a neurodegenerative disease that affects the nerves and spinal cord, reducing the ability to control muscle movements over time. Patients diagnosed with ALS typically don’t live very long following diagnosis. While a cure still has yet to be found, a recent study found that a greater blood concentration of omega-3 fatty acids was linked to a slower progression of ALS in patients afflicted with the disease. Specifically, of the patients observed, there were fewer deaths and less worsening of symptoms in those who consumed the most omega-3s compared to those who consumed the least.

Omega-3 fatty acids are found in foods such as walnuts, flaxseed, fish, pumpkin seeds, and canola oil to name a few. Fish oil supplements are also a good way to get more omega-3s in your body. In addition to the benefits that omega-3s have on ALS, they also benefit our health in many other ways. Check out the following articles from Fill Your Plate to read more!

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