The All American Diet Part 1: Omega-3 and Omega-6 Fatty Acids

No one should be surprised any more when they hear how much the American Diet has changed over the last couple of decades. Many popular documentaries and books on the subject have brought the topic to the mainstream; Fast Food Nation, Food Inc., and Super Size Me were all very enlightening on what we as Americans are eating and where it is coming from. And the information is not uplifting.

What we eat contributes directly to our health. Imbalances in our diet, overindulgences and certain tendencies can all lead to diseases or states of health that are very undesirable.

This will be the first in a series on the subject of the All American Diet. It concerns a little known topic; the amount of Omega-6 fatty acids in our diet and what it could be doing to our health.

Omega-3 and Omega-6 Fatty Acids: A Balancing Act
Omega-3 and Omega-6 are types of essential fatty acids - essential in that we cannot make them on our own and need to obtain them from our diet. We get Omega-3 fa's from only a few sources; coldwater fish such as salmon, and vegetarian sources such as walnuts and flaxseed (which contain precursors that our body can form Omega-3's with). Omega-3's are a major component of many hormones, as well as the building blocks for our cellular membranes - the outer shell of every cell in our body.

Omega-6 fa's in contrast are in many of our food choices today with most of it coming from refined vegetable oils, especially soy oil, used in snack foods and fast food. Soybean oil is so common in processed foods that it has been estimated that 20 percent of the calories an average American eats comes from this source alone!

Omega-6 fa's also produce homones. The hormones produced by each of these fa's differ in function and actually contrast each other. Omega-3 containing hormones tend to decrease inflammation, blood clotting, and cell growth while Omega-6 containing hormones tend to increase these functions. A balance between these two essential parts of our diet is necessary to maintain our health.

(note: a lot of research is currently being done concerning the role of inflammation in diseases related to aging. Inflammartory pathways appear to be responsible for a fair amount of the discomforts we gather as we age. A summary on this will be the topic of a later post.)

Because of our increased consumption of processed foods we are becoming inbalanced in our intake of Omega-3 to Omega-6 fatty acids, with a major increase in our intake of Omega-6 and a decrease in our intake of Omega-3.

Many postulates have been made in regards to this imbalance. The rise in diseases related to inflammation, such as;  asthma, coronary heart disease, many forms of cancer, autoimmunity and neurodegenerative diseases have all been linked to increased Omega-6 intake. Others have contemplated he imbalance between omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids may also contribute to obesity, depression, dyslexia, hyperactivity and even a tendency toward violence.

Another concern and the topic of much debate is the fear that our cellular structure, and the cell membranes that surround each of our cells, may change in composition due to this shift in our diet. A higher concentration of Omega-6 fa's in our cells may actually make our cells more rigid, with outcomes that we do not yet know.

Becoming more aware and educated in what you eat could prolong your life, as well as make your later years much more healthful and comfortable. Try to eat more fatty fish and eat less fast food. Pay attention to what you use to nurish your body, because, like I've said before, you are what you eat!!!