Lipids > Triglycerides > Edible Oils > Essential Fatty Acids (EFA's)

There are two families of EFA's, that have to be consumed, as they cannot be made by the human body; they are classified as 'Omega 6' and 'Omega 3' fatty acids.

Fatty acids that are required by the human body but cannot be made in sufficient quantity from other substrates, and therefore must be obtained from food, are called essential fatty acids. There are two series of essential fatty acids: one has a double bond three carbon atoms removed from the methyl end; the other has a double bond six carbon atoms removed from the methyl end. Humans lack the ability to introduce double bonds in fatty acids beyond carbons 9 and 10, as counted from the carboxylic acid side.[7] Two essential fatty acids are linoleic acid (LA) and alpha-linolenic acid (ALA). They are widely distributed in plant oils. The human body has a limited ability to convert ALA into the longer-chain n-3 fatty acids eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), which can also be obtained from fish.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fatty_acid#Essential_fatty_acids

Before the advent of the development of agriculture the proportion of these has been estimated as 3 to 2, whereas today's diet the proportion is more akin to 10:1 and is associated with "increased cancer, heart disease, allergies, diabetes and other afflictions"

An increase in the diet of Omega 3 oils is the obvious change to make, with a corresponding decrease in other oils where oil is already a large part of the diet. The daily recommended consumptions of Ω6 and Ω3 are 3-4 and 2-2 grammes per day, one teaspoon-full.

1. Using 8ml (7g) of hemp oil would provide them at 5:2
2. A use of Perilla Oil, or Linseed Oil as an additive could be preferable.with ratios of 1:4. So a mix of Olive Oil and Perilla Oil or Linseed oil in the ratio of 4:1 would provide a Ω6/Ω3 ratio of nearly 3:2

The lack of availability of Perilla oil means that Linseed oil is more likely to be used. An alternative would be to grow the Perilla plant for food.

The problem of converting LA (Ω6) to AA and ALA(Ω3) to DHA. is exacerbated by a high intake of Ω6. It is not enough to increase the Ω3 intake and reduce that of Ω6 but to reduce the overall intake of polyunsaturates, not an easy thing as sunflower oil, which is very high in Ω6 is in many margarines, cakes and crisps etc., to help the body be more keen to use the Ω3.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Essential_fatty_acid

Humans can convert both LA (Ω6 docosapentaenoic acid (22:5n-6)) to AA and ALA (Ω3 docosahexaenoic acid (22:6n-3)) to DHA. This is clearly illustrated by studies in vegans and vegetarians[6] If there is relatively more LA than ALA in the diet it favors the formation of docosapentaenoic acid (22:5n-6) from LA rather than docosahexaenoic acid (22:6n-3) from ALA. This effect can be altered by changing the relative ratio of LA:ALA but is more effective when total intake of polyunsaturated fatty acids is low. However, the capacity to convert LA to AA and ALA to DHA in the preterm infant is limited, and preformed AA and DHA may be required to meet the needs of the developing brain. Both AA and DHA are present in breastmilk and contribute along with the parent fatty acids LA and ALA to meeting the requirements of the newborn infant. Many infant formulas have AA and DHA added to them to be equivalent to human milk.

https://ajcn.nutrition.org/content/77/1/226.full

Lactating women who supplemented their diet with flaxseed oil showed increases in blood and breastmilk concentration of alpha-linolenic acid and eicosapentaenoic acid but no changes to concentrations of docosahexaenoic acid.[13]

For

1. Some Sources of Omega 3
2. Plasma Lipoproteins: Composition, structure and biochemistry

Perilla frutescens var. japonica, called egoma in Japan and deul-ggeh in Korean

Next Page: LA to AA, ALA to DHA, EPA ????

Pages: 1· 2