Right fats will lessen desire for bad fats

Published June 15, 2002 in the North Island Weekender

 

In January of this year I wrote two articles explaining the benefits of some saturated fatty acids. In this article I want to further clarify the confusion around fats in our diets.
Most of us think that fats are bad, and when I try and introduce essential fats into my healthy programs for people they balk. “I don’t want to gain weight” is their most common concern. In fact if you ingest good quality essential 3 fatty acids they will lessen the desire for bad fats and assist in weight loss. Let me explain.
Good fats are those that our bodies cannot make so we have to ingest them.  This makes them “essential”. They are the polyunsaturated omega “3” and omega “6” essential fats. These fats make up every cell wall in the body so are as necessary as vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, carbohydrates and protein are for life.  The most common omega 3 fats are LNA (alpha-linoneic ), EPA (eicosapentaenoic acid) and DHA (docosahexaenoic). The most common source of LNA is flax, hemp, canola and soy but flax being 50% LNA is by far the richest source. EPA and DHA are found in cold water fish fat found in salmon, trout, mackerel and sardines.
Omega 6 essential fats are found more readily than omega 3 and can be easily obtained in the diet from avocados, most nuts, and vegetable oils such as safflower, sunflower, corn and soy oil. Omega 3 essential fats are harder to come by because there are few original sources. Cooking easily destroys both types. When people ask me about using GLA (Gamma- linolenic acid) such as found in borage (20%) and evening primrose oil (9%), I don’t encourage it as much as we aren’t as deficient in these omega 6 essential fats and they may promote inflammation in the body if the body doesn’t require them. However if they are working for you by all means keep taking them BUT add omega 3 essential fats to your program as well!
The benefits of EPA and DHA include: keeps platelets less sticky to reduce incidence of clots that can cause heart attack or stroke; lowers apo (a) and fibrinogen levels in arteries which are repair proteins important in preventing atherosclerosis; lowers triglycerides up to 65%, lowers cholesterol and LDL cholesterol (bad cholesterol) all of which are important in the prevention of heart disease and kidney failure; lowers blood pressure by inhibiting inflammatory series 3 prostaglandins; inhibits growth and metastasis of cancerous tumors. The negative research associated with flax oil and prostate cancer may be in part due to the use of rancid oils in the research. Many patients and professionals don’t realize how sensitive these oils are to light and oxygen. In the case of flax oil a fresh opened bottle every month is imperative, as it will promote oxidation in the body if it is rancid. Dates on flax oil bottles only reflect freshness before they are opened.
 Sixty percent of our brain tissue is composed of fats namely arachidonic acid and DHA. DHA is the preferred fat for the nervous system and crucial for the function of neurotransmitters such as serotonin and dopamine. LNA or flax oil converts into EPA and DHA in the body under ideal nutritional conditions i.e. adequate vitamin B3, B6, Vitamin C, magnesium and zinc. In my practice I see folks every day who are deficient in one of more of these cofactors so it is little wonder that our bodies are so deficient in EPA and DHA!  Diseases such as Alzheimer’s, dementia, Parkinson’s disease, stroke, arthritis, breast cancer, Crohn’s disease, emphysema, chronic bronchitis, asthma, heart disease, diabetes, hypertension, ADHD, autism, dyslexia, learning disabilities and allergies are a result of essential fatty acid deficiency! You can see why the experts say that Omega 3 essential fat is the most common deficiency in modern society.
In my practice I am now recommending that people alternate between flax oil and purified (i.e. no PCB’s, mercury or dioxins) cod liver oil. The brands I recommend are Flora for flax oil and Carlson’s for cod-liver oil. Both are taken in tablespoon daily doses. The flax oil needs to be ingested in one month after opening or discarded and refrigerated constantly. The cod-liver oil is more stable once opened and needs to be refrigerated only after opening.
The added benefit of the cod-liver oil is the immune enhancement of the Vitamin A and D. If folks won’t take the flax oil, Carlson’s tastes better. It comes in lemon non-fishy flavour and is very light so doesn’t burp back up. That fishy odor that we are used to when we took it as kids is due to the rancidity of the oil.
The immediate benefits that most notice are: improvement in dry skin, improvement in energy, improvement in joint and bowel function and improvement in moods. One fellow recently came into the office asking for the flax oil as it had cured his psoriasis!
Many folks ask if ingesting freshly ground flaxseeds will be enough to get the adequate omega 3 oils and this is true if you ingest ¼ cup four times per week! Most aren’t doing this so I recommend that you have both in your diet.
Animals sources of omega 3 fats include eggs and free range meat if they are fed plants high in these oils. The fish mentioned above are excellent sources however there is the added worry of the environmental toxins in all fish so best to choose those fish that are not too big or old as they have time to accumulate more toxins.
The best time to start taking essential fats is while you are in utero! Make sure you are taking them if you are pregnant or plan to be. Give yourself an oil change today!
 
Dr. Pincott has been practicing naturopathic medicine since 1985 and is currently practicing in Campbell River. She can be reached at (250) 286-3655 or www.DrPincott.com