Something Is Fishy with Most EFAs
NUTRITION
Doug Grant
Essential fatty acids, or EFAs, are an essential part of your health you must acquire from outside sources. The key components are omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids, which are unsaturated oils considered essential because the human body must have them but cannot manufacture them on its own.
They play huge roles in muscle growth and maintain healthy levels of body fat. This translates into optimal health for your heart, the muscle that never stops working hard.
You need only several grams per day to maintain optimal EFA levels. Those few grams are involved in heart health, energy production, hormone production, oxygen transfer, hemoglobin production, cell membrane components, recovery from fatigue, joint, and eye health, and much more.
Between the human body not being able to produce its own EFAs and dramatic dietary changes over the past century, people tend to have a DHA deficiency. Countless studies show that this deficiency is at least in part to blame for the rising incidence of cardiovascular disease, inflammatory disease, mental and psychiatric disorders, and suboptimal neurodevelopment.1
Studies show that a diet rich in alpha-linolenic acid (ALA), eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) can help protect against heart disease. These omega-3s have been shown to reduce high blood lipids and blood pressure, as well as decrease blood clotting. A meta-analysis of over 70 research studies shows that both omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids can help with blood pressure.
While it’s important to supplement with EFAs, what’s even more important is where you get them from, and I’m not talking supplement companies. Em talking about your source for this essential vitamin. People aren’t getting what they think they’re paying for.
Danger: Mercury Ahead
Anahad O’Connor from the New York Times wrote, “The new research, carried out by a testing company called LabDoor, analyzed 30 top-selling fish oil supplements for levels of omega-3 fatty acids, a group of compounds with anti-inflammatory effects. It found that six of those products contained levels of omega3s that were, on average, 30 percent less than stated on their labels.
“The research found more problems when it looked specifically at levels of two particular omega-3 s that are promoted for brain and heart health: docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA). Tests showed that at least a dozen products contained DHA levels that were, on average, 14 percent less than listed on their packaging.”
On top of that, all of those products contained mercury. All 30 of them.
Fish oil is the industry-favorite source of EFAs, but the problem is that fish are often contaminated with mercury and environmental chemicals. This means the EFAs have to be processed repeatedly to get rid of the mercury, which destroys the product. So, even though all 30 tested products had low mercury levels, there’s a negative tradeoff.
Removing mercury from fish requires a process called molecular distillation. There are heating and cooling processes, along with steps to minimize exposure to air. It’s grown more efficient over the years, but the bottom line is you don’t have to go through all this to get a safe, pure potent dose of EFAs.
Traditionally DHA oil is obtained from fish. Unfortunately, no body of water is free from the ravages of pollution. Fish contain high levels of toxic materials, and the oil itself is fragile, making it easy to have already gone bad before it hits shelves. To get around this, companies source their EFAs from krill.
Krill oil is higher in antioxidants than fish oil, but its first major downfall is its higher price. The second is that it’s subject to the same pollutants and presence of heavy metals.
However, while research has shown eating whole fish can have heart-protecting benefits, scientific studies have not yet proven that taking omega-3 supplements offers the same benefits as eating fish.
Then there are the side effects of taking both oils:
• Bad breath
• Diarrhea
• Headache
• Heartburn
• Unpleasant-smelling sweat
• Upset stomach
• Negative interactions with blood thinning medications
An Encapsulating Nightmare
Manufacturers can process almost every trace of mercury out, but omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids are very sensitive; light, heat, and oxygen can destroy them. Both can be avoided by keeping them in dark bottles in the refrigerator.
Light triggers the production of free radicals in oils and speeds up the reaction of oils with oxygen, which can induce cross-linking of fatty acid molecules into dimers and polymers. Light-induced free radical chain reactions can break EFAs down into many different kinds of products, including aldehydes, ketones, and other toxic and nontoxic components.
Commercial processing can denature EFAs. They are heated to high temperatures in order to refine them, and then they’re deodorized by passing them through a series of heaters, and the temperature is increased to around 200 degrees Celsius. Such temperatures change the basic structure of the oil into a form that can be harmful.
The main problem with most EFA products on the market today is the inability of keeping them fresh because of their exposure to oxygen. Oxygen easily permeates traditional capsules and EFAs since liquids in bottles are exposed to oxygen every time the lid comes off them.
Other, Safer Sources
Other sources include hemp, flax, walnuts, almonds, dark green leafy vegetables, eggs, and more. Studies have shown that ALA supplements (like flax oil) are unable to raise plasma DHA levels in vegans, despite low DHA levels at baseline. So, unless they are supplements with an algae-derived source of DHA, you’re not going to get enough to help your health.
This is significant because researchers are now led to believe that the majority of the health benefits we get from dietary omega-3 fats come from the longer chain derivatives.
Quality DHA oil is derived from microalgae grown in controlled vats, thereby yielding contaminatefree DHA, and it’s vegan safe. No heating, minimal processing, and they’re mercury-free from the start.
The Richest, Safest Source
A supplement company worth their EFA product knows to use leading capsule manufacturers to encapsulate a complete blend of EFAs in a capsule utilizing a patented sealing process. This virtually eliminates the product’s exposure to oxygen.
The best EFA supplements contain a unique blend of stabilized oils from plant sources, making them a choice essential fatty acid source for vegetarians. They also allow you to avoid any level of PCBs and other toxins found in supplements made from fish oils.
ALA from flaxseed oil, the richest source of LNA; DHA from algae, the only vegetable-based DHA source; and GLA from borage oil, the richest source of GLA completely removes the risk of mercury and other contaminants.
The body needs essential fats for essential heart health. By utilizing the same source of EFAs that the fish get (algae), you ensure heart-healthy benefits without compromise.
References:
1. Jones PJH, Kubow S. Lipids, Sterols, and their Metabolites. In: Shils ME, et al., eds. Modern Nutrition in Health and Disease: Tenth Edition. Baltimore, MD; Philadelphia, PA: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins (2006) pp. 92-122.
2. https://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2014/01/22/ whats-in-your-fish-oil-supplements/
3. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/ PMC4179167/
4. https://udoerasmus. com/caring-for-essentialfatty-acids/
5. https://www.dovemed.com/healthy-living/ we lines s-centercan-omega-3-fatty-acids-bedestroyed-high-heat-cooking
Douqlas Grant has been a team ■ ⅜⅝. ^ nutritionist for many NBA teams and professional athletes for over 20 years. He owns Optimal Health Sys| terns, and formulates programs and therapeutic products for thousands of doctors around the world to help with disease and bring back optimal health. He worked with world-leading organic chemists to create a complete formula that combines all the needed essential fatty acids in proper ratios to ensure cellular healing. Contact OHS at 1-800-890-4547.
