Essential Fatty Acids 1000mg

When people hear the word fat, they automatically think it is something bad. Of course, the wrong types of fat can lead to weight problems, but not all fats are the same. For a healthy, nutritious diet, certain fats are essential to ensure the body is working properly. These fats, commonly called essential fatty acids (EFAs), are not something that the body can produce naturally but are crucial for health and wellbeing. Essential fatty acids come from the food we eat, so people who think that cutting fat completely from their diet is a good thing, are wrong.

Essential Fatty Acids Benefits

Essential fatty acids derive their name from their molecular construction. EFAs are organic compounds -the basic building blocks of cells - which are a string of hydrogen bound carbon molecules with acids at the end. Unlike other organic compounds, which the body can produce naturally with the right diet, EFAs cannot be synthesised and the only way our bodies can get them is through the food that we eat. EFAs are crucial for hormone production, in particular for producing prostaglandin, a shortage of which can lead to migraines, arthritis and raised blood pressure. However, ensuring we have enough essential fatty acids in our diet is not easy.

Essential Fatty Acids Tablets

Essential fatty acids are sometimes referred to as vitamin F or polyunsaturates, which differ from weight gaining fats, which are known as saturates or saturated fat. Unlike saturated fats, which provide energy to the body, but can lead to weight problems when consumed in large quantities, essential fatty acids only have positive effects on the body, which include nourishing the skin, hair and nails, lowering blood pressure, reducing cholesterol (the artery clogging fats in our blood stream). EFAs also help prevent conditions such as arthritis, cardiovascular disease, eczema, psoriasis and thrombosis (blood clots). In addition, EFAs play a primary role in the development of the brain and central nervous system.

Perhaps the two most critical of these fatty acids are omega-6, also known as linoleic acid, and omega 3, known as alpha-linoleic acid. Usually, we get these two EFAs from our diet. Foods such as oily fish (sardines, mackerel, herring and salmon), seeds and certain nuts (hazelnuts, almonds, cashews, and walnuts nuts) are high in omega-3, while omega-6 can be found in certain vegetable oils such as borage, grape seed, primrose, sesame and soybean oil.

Essential Fatty Acids Review

Using these omega-6 oils instead of your typical saturated fats in cooking can reduce cholesterol levels. This means that you can reduce the risk of heart disease and blocked up arteries. However, in the fast-paced world in which we all live, it is not always easy to get enough of these fatty acids in our regular diets, which is where supplements can help by ensuring you get enough EFAs, regardless of what you are eating.