Essential Fatty Acids Sources
The “good fats” are the essential fatty acids. The “good fats” will compete with the “bad fats” (trans fat and unsaturated fats) so it’s important to reduce the intake of trans facts and animal fats and instead choose healthier fats where possible.
Good fats also help to raise your good cholesterol of HDL level which help to cling to the bad cholesterol in your blood stream and help transport it to the liver where it is broken down and excreted.
Basically the good fats help to offset some of the damage caused by the bad fats, to a limited extent (That doesnt mean you can have a full cheesecake and then just have half a bottle of olive oil to offset it, unfortunately it doesn’t work like that!)
EFA’s or Essential fatty acids are fats that the body cannot produce and therefore must be consumed through our diet. EFA’s are a form of polyunsaturated fats and they come in two families – Omega 3 and 6 is one family and Omega 9 is the other (please note the body can produce a good amount of Omega 9 provided that there are other EFA’s present in the body).
What do EFA’s do? And why are they so good for us?
EFA’s help to build, repair and maintain some essential bodily systems including the nervous system, immune system and cardiovascular. There is a lot more science behind this, but basically EFA’s are incredibly healthy for us in many many ways so try to make sure they are included in your healthy balanced diet. EFA’s are important for young, old, male, female, pregnant, ill – whoever you are, you need EFA’s.
Where can you find EFA’s?
Flaxseed oil is great or other linolenic rich foods. Rememeber hot temperatures when cooking EFA rich oils and fish can destroy the nutritional benefits of the essential fatty acids so be careful not to cook too hot! Flaxseed oil has the highest Omega 3 content of any food. Next best are hempseed oil, walnuts, pumpkin seeds, brazil nuts, avocados, spinach, canola oil, sesame seeds, salmon, mackerel, sardines, anchovies and more. If buying canola oil, but the cold-pressed oil which is healthier as some of the cheaper oils are heated and processed which loses some of it’s healthy properties.
What is the easiest way to get Omega 3 and EFA’s into your diet?
One tablespoon of Flaxseed oil per day or snacking on the nuts/seeds mentioned above throughout the day.
Omega 6 (Linoleic acid)
Omega 6 has many health boosting properties including helping to improve arthritis, skin disoders and can help in cancer treatments.
Where can you find Omega 6?
Flaxseed oil again is a great source of Omega 6, pumpkin seeds, olive oil, evening primrose oil, pine nuts, pistachio nuts.
Omega 9 (Oleic Acid)
The body can produce some Omega 9 so its not as essential as the other Omega 3′s.
Where is omega 9 found?Olive oil(extra virgin or virgin cold pressed oil) avocadoes, almonds, pecans, hazelnuts, cashews, peanuts and others. A couple of tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil on salads, or with fish are great to getting Omega 9 into your diet.
Remember:
- High temperatures when cooking can destroy EFA’s – so if your trying to be very EFA healthy try to avoid cooking foods at high temperatures. E.g nuts are much healthier in raw form than roasted and salted.
- When your having toast/sandwiches or anything that would normally need a margarine or butter, try to use a EFA based fats or oil when possible.
- Try to snack on nuts and seeds instead of crisps and chocolate
- If you want the healthiest oil to cook with at high temperatures choose extra virgin olive oil or grapeseed oil as these remain stable at high temperatures.
