Back here at The Loading Dock we’re too busy trying not to break bottles while dodging forklifts to waste time with pleasantries. So let’s get right to Part II of the easy, three-step basic supplementation plan for your New Year – fatty acids.
Oh, so you didn’t read last week’s installment thinking there would be a review, eh, tough guy? Alright, let’s review. Take your vitamins, the whole food, natural kind. Leave the man-made chemicals on the shelf.
So much for reviewing; we’ve got to talk about essential fatty acids. All fats are not created equally.
There’s a reason some are called essential. It’s because they’re…well, essential, essential to just about everything our bodies do. Sublime in it’s simplicity isn’t it?
Fatty acids have been beneficially linked to a vast array of issues from asthma to Alzheimer’s, from brain function to mood swings. Omega 3s have been shown to reduce ADHD symptoms in children.
See article abstract here.
However, we do not produce omega 3 (eicosapentaenoic acid) or omega 6 (docosahexaenoic acid) in our bodies. We can only ingest them.
Omega 3 is found in oily, cold water fish like salmon, herring and sardines. The American Heart Association recommends eating them twice a week. Other sources are spirulina, pumpkin,
chia and flax seeds.
Grape seed, borage oil and primrose oil are good natural sources of Omega 6. The drive-thru window is also an omega 6 source, but not a good one.
We get too much omega 6, also known as the dreaded DHAs, with our modern, fast-food society – way too much. Experts recommend a ratio of about 4:1, omega 3 to omega 6. Some studies show our intake can be up to 20:1 of the omega 6 to omega 3, and that’s where the fat problems begin. Think about that next time you decide to super-size.
If we have enough omegas 3 and 6, our bodies will produce omega 9, monounsaturated oleic and stearic acid, whose benefits include boosting the immune system and prevention of artery hardening. Omega 9 also helps regulate the ratio of omegas 3 and 6.
(And you thought such an inspired system evolved from a single cell swimming through a primordial cesspool. But I digress.)
You can get your omega 9 from a variety of nuts such as walnuts, macadamias, cashews and almonds. (Almond Joys don’t count.) Chia, olives and olive oil will also do you well.
So…what now? Look, I love fish and I like nuts, sort of. But I don’t eat either twice a week, and I wouldn’t know a macadamia if it jumped off the tree and hit me in the eye.
I do like
Barlean’s Omega Man, however. It’s quick, easy and it gets me what I need – omegas 3, 6 and 9 - in the right amounts. For women, there’s
Essential Woman. I’d take it, but I’m afraid I’d come out the other side looking like Bette Midler.
Check out the
Barlean’s products here. They’re all cold pressed (no cooking or heat) and they don’t press them until we order. Then they fly the oil to us. No kidding. You can’t get cold-pressed oil any fresher.
There’s another omega, lucky 7.
Omega 7 from New Chapter gets its oil from the sea buckthorn berry. Omega 7 is beneficial to mucus, digestive and other sensitive membranes. Plus, it has about 12 times as much vitamin C as an orange.
OK. We’re just about home. You’ve got your good, whole food daily vitamin. You’ve got your omegas coursing through the veins. Next week it’s time for some bacteria. Now we’re talking.
Happy New Year; Love your life!