Arachidonic Acid: Benefits, Side Effects, Best Time to Take It & More

Arachidonic Acid

(ARA)

Evidence: High
Possible Benefits: Very Low
Safety: Low

What is arachidonic acid?

Arachidonic acid (ARA) is an essential omega-6 fatty acid. It can be obtained from meat and animal products or synthesized in the body from linoleic acid. This article is about the main benefits of arachidonic acid, its potential side effects, the best time to take it, and more.

What does arachidonic acid do for the body?

Since arachidonic acid is an essential fatty acid, you need to consume or synthesize at least some amount of it to survive.

Arachidonic acid has several important functions in the body, including:

Inflammation – Arachidonic acid is a precursor to the production of prostaglandins and leukotrienes, which are signaling molecules involved in the inflammatory response.

Pain – Prostaglandins produced from arachidonic acid are involved in the sensation of pain and in the regulation of body temperature.

Blood clotting – Arachidonic acid is involved in the regulation of blood clotting, as it is a precursor to the production of thromboxanes, which play a role in blood coagulation.

Nerve function – This fatty acid is involved in the regulation of nerve function and synaptic transmission.

Cardiovascular health – Arachidonic acid and its derivatives play a role in the regulation of blood pressure and blood vessel tone, and have been implicated in the development of cardiovascular disease.

Possible benefits

Minor benefits

Slower cognitive decline – The ability to produce ARA from linoleic acid decreases in older age. Older people may notice a minor improvement in memory and focus when they take the fatty acid.

Possible side effects

These side effects are dose-dependent. The risk for them increases (often linearly but sometimes exponentially) as you increase the dose. Some of the side effects only apply to very high doses.

Nausea
Diarrhea
Oxidation – Arachidonic acid is prone to oxidation and can become a pro-oxidant that can easily cause more harm than good in the body. This is why you need to choose the brand you get arachidonic acid from carefully and store the supplement well.
Inflammation – Omega 6 fatty acids can increase levels of chronic inflammation in the body, which can lead to a wide variety of undesired side effects.
Omega 3:6 imbalance – Omega 3 and 6 have to be kept in balance as too much of one can cause problems if not enough of the other is present. The optimal ratio between the two is somewhere between 1:4 to 4:1. Most people get too much omega 6 and too little omega 3s but if you consume high amounts of fish and take fish oil while getting a low amount of omega 6, too much omega 3 can also lead to an imbalance.
Toxicity – While acute toxicity is extremely rare, taking high amounts of arachidonic acid could lead to chronic toxicity and cause some health problems. To prevent chronic toxicity, it is best to stay below 1 gram a day unless you have a great reason to take more.
Contamination – Contaminated supplements are uncommon in the USA and other well-regulated countries. However, if you wish to buy products from China, India, or other countries without strict regulations, beware that the supplements may be contaminated. Either way, you need to choose the brand you order from wisely. It is highly recommended to check the certificates or read through some reviews for the specific product before you buy it. The FDA (Food and Drug Administration) has the power to regulate dietary supplements but can only do so after they have been on the market for a while. That’s because supplement companies are not obligated to announce to the FDA when releasing a new product on the market. The FDA has to discover the product and test it for potential impurities, which can take a lot of time. During that time, the supplement can be sold on the market even if it’s impure. Also, supplement companies can change their manufacturers without announcing it to the FDA.

Who should not take arachidonic acid?

You should probably avoid taking the supplement if you:

experience a severe adverse reaction after taking the fatty acid
are deficient in omega 3 fatty acids
experience high levels of inflammation

Who will benefit the most?

You should consider taking the supplement if you:

are on an extremely low-fat diet
are on a plant-based diet and unable to produce enough arachidonic acid from linoleic acid due to genetics

How much arachidonic acid should you take?

If you plan to take an arachidonic acid supplement, 500 mg appears to be the best daily dose for most people. This amount should provide most of the benefits without meaningful side effects.

The upper safety limit for arachidonic acid is not well-established. To stay on the safe side, don’t take more than 1 gram daily unless you have a great reason to do so. Higher amounts may cause problems if you take the supplement for a prolonged period.

Keep in mind that arachidonic acid should also be kept in balance with omega 3. The optimal ratio between the two is anywhere from 1:4 to 4:1.

Best time to take arachidonic acid

Arachidonic acid is fat-soluble so make sure to take it with food to absorb it well.

Whether you take the supplement in the morning or the evening doesn’t matter much.

Unless it feels too impractical, spread the daily dose into 2+ smaller doses throughout the day.

Interactions

Omega 3
Omega 3 and 6 have to be kept in balance as too much of one can cause problems if not enough of the other is present. The optimal ratio between the two is somewhere between 1:4 to 4:1.
Vitamin E
Vitamin E protects fatty acids from oxidizing, both inside and outside the body. It is important to note that if the arachidonic acid in the supplement you take has already oxidized, vitamin E cannot fix it back to normal. Taking vitamin E with rancid fish oil will not make it beneficial or non-harmful. With that said, the more fatty acids you take, the more vitamin E you will need.

Where to buy arachidonic acid

Which brand you chose will have an enormous effect on how you react to the supplement. Unfortunately, many brands sell oxidized arachidonic acid which is likely to do more harm than good.

Amazon is the best option for ordering arachidonic acid supplements in most countries. They offer some very affordable products backed by many positive reviews. Also, you can choose from a wide range of brands without having to search through other markets on the internet.

Beware some brands display the dosage per serving instead of per pill or capsule. Therefore, you may accidentally buy something less potent than you intended. Do not fall for this marketing trick.

FAQ

You can take the fatty acid daily and do not need to cycle it. However, it is certainly not a problem if you don’t take it every day. Not taking the supplement every once in a while could lead to better absorption. That is yet to be proven or disproven.

All of these options are fine. The two most important things to consider are the price and dosing. Powders are almost always the cheapest form. However, you may need a highly accurate scale to dose them correctly (preferably 0.001g). You can get one for as little as $20 from Amazon. Dosing the powders also takes some time that can add up over months or years. The disadvantage of capsules is that they often contain bovine gelatin, which rarely comes from an ethical source.

Yes. Most fatty acids, including arachidonic acid, absorb and digest well if you take them before falling asleep. The supplement should not impact sleep quality in any significant way.

This fatty acid can oxidize and become harmful if kept in bad conditions. Unfortunately, many arachidonic acid supplements are already heavily oxidized by the time you buy them, which is why choosing a high-quality brand is important.

Keep the supplement in a cold, dark, and dry place, and it should remain just as potent for many months.

While toxicity is rare, too much arachidonic acid in the system can cause some health problems, often related to oxidation or causing an imbalance in fatty acids. It is best to stay below 1 gram a day to prevent these side effects.

You may need more of this fatty acid if you:
– don’t get enough omega 6 from food
– are on a very low-fat diet

The half-life of arachidonic acid in the body is anywhere from a few hours to a day. This fatty acid should be processed in your body within 2-3 days after you consume it.

In the long term, you need to take the supplement for about 2-4 weeks to begin noticing the benefits.

Unfortunately, arachidonic acid supplements are not vegan-friendly.

Arachidonic acid is fat-soluble, so you need to take it with food to absorb it well.

Arachidonic acid should not break a fast unless you take a very high dose at once. If you practice time-restricted eating, take this fatty acid during your eating window to make sure it absorbs well and doesn’t break your fast.

References

Most of the information provided in this guide is supported by scientific research that can be found and verified in the PubMed medical library. We highly encourage you to use the library to verify anything said in this article. We excluded from consideration studies that are either confounded or have a high conflict of interest.

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