Guest Article: Essential Fatty Acids for Good Health
© By Jane Sheppard
Not all fats are built alike. There are good fats (called essential fatty acids) and there are bad fats. Understanding where you are most likely to find the good fats and using those over the bad fats (such as vegetable oils and margarines) is more important than what you might think. Eating the right fats means more than the inches on your waistline — it means cholesterol build up in your arteries and your risk of cancer. Getting our children on the right track and eating the right fats at a very young age is important to their future health.
Enjoy!
Essential fatty acids for good health
By Jane SheppardHealthyChild.com
EFA Deficiencies
"Superimmunity for Kids" by Leo Galland, M.D. with Dian Dincin Buchman, Ph.D. is an excellent book on child nutrition and maintaining a healthy immune system. Through his research and clinical work, Dr. Galland has found that essential fatty acids (EFAs) are critical to a healthy immune system. He says "we are in the midst of a nationwide epidemic of EFA deficiencies that is undermining the health of our children."
EFAs are essential because your child needs them to be healthy and her body can't make them. They must be supplied by the diet. There are numerous health problems associated with EFA deficiencies. These include hair loss, eczema-like skin eruptions, susceptibility to infections, arthritis-like conditions, liver or kidney degeneration, growth retardation and vision or learning problems.
Different Types of Fats
It's important to know about the different types of fats so you can give your child the good fats and avoid the harmful ones. Fatty acids come in two varieties: saturated and unsaturated. Saturated fats come from animal products such as meat and dairy. These fats are not essential since your child's body makes all she needs. Saturated fats are totally unnecessary and they interfere with your child’s ability to use EFAs efficiently. Most vegetable oils are unsaturated. But be very careful about vegetable oils. Not all unsaturated fatty acids are essential. If your child eats a lot of unsaturated fatty acids that are nonessential, they can interfere (even more than saturated fats) with her body's ability to use EFAs.
Unfortunately, many of the popular oils used today are nonessential fats and many are hydrogenated. Hydrogenation is a manufacturing process that converts unsaturated fats into saturated fats to prolong shelf life. Read the labels of foods you buy in the grocery store. Hydrogenated or partially hydrogenated vegetable oils are found in margarine, shortening, commercial baked goods and processed foods. Hydrogenation physically alters any EFAs in the oil, which creates artificial fatty acids. Dr. Galland states that "These artificial fatty acids are not only unnatural and unnecessary, they can have a disastrous effect on your child's body's ability to use EFAs."
Go To Page: 1 2
