| Despite the way people actually eat, most of us | | | | the cells in obtaining optimal nutrition as well as the |
| have an idea of how we should eat. Marketers have | | | | dispelling of harmful waste products. One primary |
| ingeniously leveraged this concept. For example, a | | | | function of essential fatty acids is the production of |
| group of women might be talking about what they | | | | prostaglandins which are potent mediators for a |
| had for dinner the night before. One ate carrot | | | | diverse group of physiological processes. These |
| sticks; another had low-fat cottage cheese. But one | | | | processes include, but are not limited to, the |
| had a four course meal including dessert. And she did | | | | regulation of heart rate, blood pressure, blood clotting |
| all this without any of the guilt. How outrageous! | | | | ability, vasoconstriction, fertility, and immune function. |
| Dessert without any guilt? Personally I never | | | | Of particular interest to those of us who are parents |
| understood the guilt part. I thought guilt had to do | | | | and grandparents are the effects of essential fatty |
| with real moral issues, but that should be reserved | | | | acid deficiencies in children and infants, (Even the |
| for another essay. | | | | ones not yet born). EFAs are imperative for neural |
| What's the point? We think we should be eating the | | | | development and maturation of sensory systems in |
| carrot sticks and not the dessert, but we eat the | | | | these little ones. Omega-3 (a very significant EFA) |
| dessert. The spirit is willing but the flesh is weak. | | | | deficiencies in particular are linked to decreased |
| Another example of this is we think we should be | | | | memory and mental abilities, poor vision, increased |
| avoiding fat but we eat it anyway. What if we could | | | | tendency of blood clot formation, diminished immune |
| eat all the fat we wanted? Now there is a | | | | function, impaired membrane function, learning |
| commercial that would sell. Well here is some news: | | | | disorders, irregular heartbeat and growth retardation. |
| we can have all the fat we want. Now before you | | | | Infants can become omega-3 deficient because of |
| metaphorically wad up this electronic sheet of paper | | | | inadequate supplies in the mother's milk as well as |
| and toss it into the reserved part of your hard drive | | | | infant formulas. Because of this some formula |
| known as the recycle bin hear me out. We truly can | | | | manufactures fortify their products with omega-3 |
| have all the fat we want because not all fats are the | | | | supplements. |
| same. Early nutritional concepts made the mistake of | | | | There is a wide range of essential fatty acids which |
| classifying all fats as equivalent. But in fact there is a | | | | are important to health. But there are two in |
| class of fats which are essential to health and most | | | | particular that deserve special attention. One was |
| of us get way too little of them. As a group they | | | | mentioned above, omega-3. The other is omega-6. |
| are cleverly called essential fatty acids. | | | | Both of these EFAs have gained the focus of much |
| Essential fatty acids are called 'essential' for two | | | | research and have been tested in relation to a |
| reasons. The first reason, as you probably have | | | | plethora of chronic conditions. We even buy dog |
| guessed, is because they are essential to life and | | | | food fortified with DHA (an omega-3) so our little |
| health. Simply put, without sufficient essential fatty | | | | puppy will grow up smart. |
| acids (EFAs) we cannot be healthy. More on this in a | | | | Of special concern to me are the heart health |
| moment. The second reason these fats are called | | | | implications of EFAs. Essential fatty acid imbalance or |
| 'essential' is because our bodies cannot manufacture | | | | deficiency (especially omega-3 and omega-6) has |
| them. They must be ingested through what we eat. | | | | been linked to atherosclerosis (hardening of the |
| Fats are basically chains of carbon atoms with a little | | | | arteries), high blood pressure, sudden cardiac death, |
| oxygen and hydrogen at one end. Along the chain | | | | high cholesterol and the ever popular high |
| hydrogen atoms are bound to the carbon atoms. | | | | triglycerides. The implication is, of course, that getting |
| When a fat chain contains as many hydrogen atoms | | | | a proper balance of certain EFAs can help alleviate |
| as it can hold it is said to be saturated. These are the | | | | many of the chronic heart issues that plague our |
| fats we should not eat in abundance because of their | | | | modern society. |
| negative impact on health, especially heart health. | | | | But what about low-fat diets? They are still good. |
| When a fat chain does not contain all the hydrogen it | | | | Normally when we talk about low-fat we understand |
| could possibly hold it is said to be unsaturated as in | | | | that to refer to eating less saturated fat. We have |
| 'polyunsaturated'. Among these polyunsaturated fats | | | | become a race of fast-food junkies. The meats used |
| is the class known as essential fatty acids. | | | | in such 'foods' are saturated fats. Diets replete with |
| Some essential fatty acids are foundational to the | | | | saturated fats are destructive to health. Further |
| proper building and maintenance of the reproductive, | | | | 'high-fat' diets are normally low in essential fatty acids |
| immune and nervous (including the brain) systems. In | | | | simply because we are filling up on one type of fat |
| general EFAs are necessary for the proper | | | | leaving no room for the other. |
| manufacture and repair of cell membranes. They aid | | | | |