Organic milk contains notably higher concentrations of healthful fatty acids compared to conventional milk, according to researchers from Washington State University, who spent 18 months testing hundreds of milk samples.

Omega acids found in milk are beneficial to health, but the researchers found that among nearly 400 samples analyzed in the lab, conventional milk has less healthy ratios of omega acids than organic milk.

"Conventional milk had an average omega-6 to omega-3 fatty acid ratio of 5.8, more than twice that of organic milk's ratio of 2.3," Washington State University reported, noting that the healthier omega acid ratios found in organic milk can likely be attributed to the greater reliance on pasture and forage-based feeding techniques used on organic dairy farms.

"We were surprised by the magnitude of the nutritional quality differences we documented in this study," said lead study author Charles Benbrook.

Higher ratios of omega-6 to omega-3 acids has been linked to a variety of health problems, including cardiovascular disease, cancer, excessive inflammation and autoimmune diseases, the researchers said.

A ratio of 2.3-to-1 is considered to be ideal for heart health. But the typical western diet has omega-6-to-omega-3 ratios of as much as 15-to-1.

The researchers used a hypothetical diet for adult women that had a ratio of 11.3-to-1, then looked at how three intervention strategies could possibly lower the ratio down to the healthier 2.3-to-1.

They found that almost 40 percent of the needed nine-point drop could be achieved by a switch from three daily servings of conventional dairy products to 4.5 servings of full-fat organic dairy.

The team also compared the fatty acids in dairy products to those in fish.

"We were surprised to find that recommended intakes of full-fat milk products supply far more of the major omega-3 fatty acid, ALA, than recommended servings of fish," said co-author Donald Davis.

Davis, Benbrook and their colleagues published their research in PLOS One.