The Heartland Naturopathic Clinic Email Newsletter - March 2004  

The following are our email newsletters with helpful information on staying well and our practices. They include articles on home care, natural healing, cured cases, commentary on current issues in the field of health care and medicine and other interesting and useful information. If you are interested in receiving this newsletter simply send your email address, name and a request asking to be added to our email address list to: Staff@HeartlandNaturopathic.com. 

CONTENTS
* Fats & Fish Oils: What You Need To Know For Health

FATS & FISH OILS: WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW FOR HEALTH
By Dr. Lorinda Sorensen

First there was low fat and high carb, now there are low carb and high protein diets - where did the fat go? If you have been confused about how popular diets have treated the role of fats in the diet you are not alone. Diets high in carbohydrates, especially simple carbohydrates like pasta, breads and potatoes have been shown to increase the risk of diabetes, insulin resistance, heart disease and obesity. Thanks to the popularity of the Atkins diet, the Zone diet and others, more of the American public is aware to this issue. Unfortunately, with more of the focus on meat products and protein, there is a general lack of focus on fats and the different type of fats that we eat. So what do you need to know to make healthy choices?

Some medical researchers have speculated that the low-fat craze of the 1980s was put forth by dieticians and the medical community because they did not think the American public would understand the different types of fats, and how to eat a proper ratio of them. Instead they thought to reduce all fat. So they popularized the low fat diet in the hopes that it would reduce obesity. Unfortunately, it has only made obesity and health worse because low fat diets are almost always high carbohydrate diets.

Dietary fats or lipids are of significant importance to our bodies and include such compounds as fatty acids, triglycerides, cholesterol and steroids. Without dietary fats deficiencies in fat-soluble vitamins such as vitamin A or vitamin E, will develop. Certain kinds of fats are needed for normal structure and development of brain, nervous system tissues and in healthy cell membranes.

The Basics

There are 3 main kinds of fats that we get in our diets: saturated, monounsaturated and polyunsaturated.  Fats and oils are a general name for lipid molecules, which contain fatty acids.

Saturated fats (SFAs) are fats where the fatty acid part of the molecule (the most important part) contains no double bonds between carbon atoms, and the carbons are in a straight chain. Many saturated fats are solid at room temperature (for example butter and lard), which has made them very useful for cooking. SFAs are very common in tropical oils and animals, especially mammalian meat products. An overabundance of SFAs has been implicated in the formation of heart disease.

Monounsaturated fats (MUFAs) are molecules where there is one carbon-to-carbon double bond. So instead of being straight, it has a slight bend in it. Because it has only one double bond it usually occurs at the same spot in the molecule, at nine carbons from one end. Therefore they are called omega-9 oils. The most common source of monounsaturated fats is from avocados, olive and canola oil. Diets from Mediterranean countries like France are high in MUFAs.

And last but not least are the polyunsaturated fats (PUFAs). These fats have more than one unsaturated bond, and can be very curly in structure. Almost all naturally occurring PUFAs have a curly structure that is predominately in what is called a “cis” formation. This is in contrast to oils and fats that have been hydrogenated through chemical manipulation. Here a lot of the fat has been turned into a “trans” formation - a completely different curled structure. This is important because chemical shape is very important to how the body responds to it. These trans-fatty acids are harmful to the body and are much worse than saturated fats for heart disease. Trans-fatty acids and hydrogenated oils actually inhibit the formation and utilization of the good fatty acids. Trans-fatty acids are found in abundance in margarine and vegetable shortening, but are rarely found in nature. 

The Essential Fatty Acids

Among PUFAs there are two main groups of fats that the human body needs in order to be healthy. The first is the omega-6 group. Linoleic acid is an essential omega-6 fatty acid. Its essential because our bodies can’t make it. Linoleic acid is very common in plants and vegetables such as sunflower, safflower, corn and soybean oils, walnuts and almonds, sesame and pumpkin seeds and pine nuts. Our bodies can convert linoleic acid to another fatty acid you may see for sale in health food stores, gamma-linolenic acid (GLA). GLA is found in evening primrose seed oil, borage seed oil, black current seed oil and is in spirulina. GLA is considered by some to be the best oil when treating some inflammatory conditions. But if you eat vegetable oil, you are probably getting more than enough omega-6 fatty acids.

The other essential fatty acids are in the omega-3 group. The main dietary omega-3 fatty acid is alpha linolenic acid. Its found in great abundance in flax, and is found in chia, pumpkin seeds, walnuts and dark leafy green vegetables. Alpha linolenic acid is used in the body to make eicoapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), fatty acids that are also found in fish. EPA and DHA can slow down the production of inflammatory chemicals and increase beneficial chemicals that are anti-inflammatory, anti-thrombotic and anti-spasmodic. They are the best fatty acids for protection against heart disease. Since the body can make EPA and DHA from alpha linolenic acid, they are not considered essential but many studies find positive health benefits of from their use. As well as protecting hearts, fish oils improve circulation, are thought to dampen inflammatory conditions, improve thinking, and may even have a role in preventing cancer.

The Fish  

This leads us to discuss fish, and how not all fish are created the same. The fish highest in omega-3 fatty acids are salmon, sardines, herring, trout, mackerel and both albacore and blue fin tuna. Most of these types of fish are available in supermarkets as fresh or canned. While canning doesn’t change the omega-3 fatty acids composition, it does create a more processed and therefore less vital food product. Most other fish and seafood are considerably lower in omega-3 fatty acids.

Of concern is that some fish are dangerously high in mercury, a heavy metal that is toxic to the brain and nervous system, especially in young children. The mercury levels in certain fish are so high that the FDA warns that women of childbearing age should limit the consumption of predatory fish, such as shark, swordfish, king mackerel and tilefish. Tuna is a predatory fish not mentioned in the FDA warning but because it is one of the most commonly eaten fish it gets special attention. While tuna is high in omega-3 fatty acids, it is also very high in methylmercury, the active form of mercury in seafood. In a report done by Bill Moyers last year it was shown that a person that ate one 6-ounce can of tuna would be getting 52.7 micrograms of mercury. If this person was a 45 pound child that child would be getting 4 times what the Environmental Protection Agency has determined to be an acceptable amount of mercury. So unfortunately tuna is potentially harmful and its use should be limited. 

Because salmon is high in EFAs and low in mercury, it is definitely the best choice. But when looking for salmon to add to the diet there are a few options to chose from: fresh, frozen or canned. There is also another element to the choice: whether to purchase wild caught or farm raised fish. There are many salmon hatcheries that produce farmed salmon very similar to the fish that is caught in the wild. However, to grow the fish as similar to the wild as possible it has been fed food with additives or food made from other fish parts. 

The fatty acid makeup of these fish may be similar to wild-catch fish, depending on what type of food the fish are fed. But recently it has been shown that farmed salmon can be high in other, newer dangerous man-made chemicals like dioxins and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs). According to the Environmental Protection Agency the levels of these chemicals are well below what they call “standard,” but other groups such as the Environmental Working Group believe that these levels are high enough to increase the risk of cancer. 

The Bottom Line  

So what can you do when choosing foods to eat to achieve optimum essential fatty acids (EFA) levels and for health? 

Don’t consume hydrogenated oils or trans-fatty acids like in margarine, shortening (Crisco) and most deep-fried fast foods. This includes fried fish from most restaurants, especially fast food restaurants. Most prepackaged frozen fish are also cooked in hydrogenated oils. Look at labels, because it will list fats used (look out for “partially hydrogenated vegetable oils”). If you must use frying methods for cooking use a stable monounsaturated oils like olive or canola. Although Crisco is used frequently in baked goods, using butter is much more natural and safer. Margarine is composed of trans-fatty acids and should rarely if ever be used. Some newer kinds of margarines are now being made without hydrogenation, making these are acceptable choices. If you want to try margarine that it claims it has no trans-fatty acids make sure it has not been hydrogenated. Hydrogenation itself is the problem. 

Raw nuts and seeds are a great way to increase good EFAs in the diet. Most nuts and seeds also contain a moderate amount of protein that makes them a great snack for someone following a low-carb diet. Nut butters also can be used to make excellent sauces for meats and vegetables. The best nuts are walnuts and almonds, with peanuts being the worst (peanuts are actually in the bean family and not nuts). Seeds can also be eaten for snacks and can also be ground into a meal and added to food. Flax meal is an example. Flax oil can be used as a supplement as well. Flax oil may be used with foods (i.e., in salad dressing). Flax seeds and oil should be stored in the refrigerator and never be heated. 

Eating fish can be a challenge for some but it is the best food to get high quality fatty acids. To reduce the amount of the other more hazardous compounds in the fish remove the skin and grill or bake it. As mentioned before salmon has a great composition of fatty acids, but other fish such as sardines and herring are also good. 

Supplements can be the most convenient way to get EFAs. If you are going to use fish oils as a supplement for omega-3 oils several brands have consistently provided high quality oil that is routinely checked for contaminants. These include Carlson and Nordic Naturals.

Health researchers are consistently coming up with data that essential fatty acids and the fatty acids found in fish have numerous benefits. We hope this has shed light on fatty acids in the diet and the benefits of fish. Now you too can reap the rewards of these powerful foods.

Many of the supplements specifically mentioned in these articles can be ordered from us by calling (402) 391-6714 or can be found at your local health food store and various online companies.