Fats and health

At the beginning of the 1970s, Danish researchers made an astonishing discovery among Eskimos: despite a high-fat diet, cardiovascular diseases are practically unknown among them, in contrast to the Scandinavian population. As long as they followed tradition and fed mainly on fish and marine mammals, they were also spared other diseases. Several years of research and comparisons with other population groups provided the explanation: the biological advantage of the Eskimos is based on the omega-3 derivatives EPA and DHA, which are abundant in seal fat and in the fatty flesh of Arctic fish.

For people in affluent societies the word “fat” often arouses uneasy feelings; one thinks of trousers that are too tight and of the ideal figure one does not have. Yet it is often not known that fat is found not only on the hips and around the abdomen, but that different fats perform a multitude of tasks in the body.

What are fats

Fats are compounds of one molecule of glycerol with three fatty acids each, which is why they are also called “triglycerides”.

A fatty acid molecule, like a carbohydrate molecule, consists of carbon (C), hydrogen (H) and oxygen (O). In the chain, each “four-handed” carbon link holds, so to speak, the link in front of it with one hand and the next one behind it with the other hand. The two remaining hands are occupied by hydrogen, and the fatty acid is described as (hydrogen-) “saturated”. In an “unsaturated” fatty acid, two neighbouring carbon links, instead of each binding to one hydrogen atom, hold on to each other with two hands each (this is a “double bond” or “unsaturation”).

The saturated fatty acids, the basic substance of the lipids that are solid at room temperature, are also components of our membranes; mainly, however, they form our fat reserves (over 90%). We can produce them ourselves from the essential unsaturated fatty acids and therefore do not depend on their being supplied from outside. For this reason we should be very restrained in consuming them in meat, in dairy products and in vegetable fats. In terms of their nature, their molecules are straight, inflexible and compact and, compared with the unsaturated ones, have a melting point above room temperature, which rises even higher depending on the firmness of the type of fat.

With each double bond, the unsaturated fatty acids have a “movable joint” which allows them a high degree of elasticity. The longer and more unsaturated a fatty acid chain is, the more flexible it is. Through the loss of hydrogen as the double bonds between the carbon atoms multiply, their melting point falls to as low as -100C. The omega-3 fatty acids, which are defined as northern and cold lipids, thus play a decisive role in the physiological heat regulation that protects the northern flora and fauna from heat loss. They enable the membranes to adapt to a hostile environment and prevent the plants, above all flax, but also rapeseed and wheat, from freezing and breaking. For animals, too, as biological antifreeze agents they are highly effective tissue and joint lubricants with anti-inflammatory properties. Because of their flexibility, suppleness and elasticity, the unsaturated fatty acids form main components of our cell membranes and our skin. In addition, they are also precursors of a large number of messenger substances.

The omega fatty acids in the form of phospholipids are components of every cell membrane. The word omega refers to the carbon of the CH3 end link of the chain (corresponding to the name of the last letter of the Greek alphabet). From this omega end one then counts the position of the first double bond. Thus in the omega-3 fatty acids the first unsaturated bond is the 3rd, and in the omega-6 fatty acids the 6th, counted from the omega end. In all polyunsaturated fatty acids the double bonds occur at intervals of three carbon atoms each.

Until the 19th century the ratio of omega-6 to omega-3 fatty acids in our food was about 1:1. Since the 19th century the consumption of omega-3 has been declining, while that of the saturated lipids and the omega-6 fatty acids has been increasing. In the 20th century the discrepancy grew ever larger and developed over the last 30 to 40 years to the present ratio of 10:1. Alongside the saturated fats, this imbalance of the omega acids is an important, endemic cause of creeping malnutrition, which urgently needs to be corrected. An oversupply of omega-6 fatty acids is due to eating too much animal fat. Since even the feed of the pigs and cattle that supply meat today contains too many omega-6 fatty acids and too few omega-3 representatives, it affects the fat composition of the animals. Between the omega-6 and the omega-3 fatty acids in the human diet, a healthy ratio of at least 3:1 should be ensured.

The highly unsaturated, ultra-long omega-3 fatty acids EPA and DHA are formed above all in the fish oil of cold-water fish (mackerel, salmon, herring) and in the blubber oil of cold-water mammals (whales, seals), only after chain elongation and a further increase in their degree of unsaturation, and after their accumulation through the food chain. From this follows the compelling need, in the event of a deficiency, to resort directly to gamma-linolenic acid (GLA) in evening primrose oil and to eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) in fish oil.

Fatty acids in food

To a lesser extent, the unsaturated fatty acids are found in green leafy vegetables. In addition, alpha-linolenic acid is contained in high concentration in linseed oil and to a lesser degree in nut oil and in wheat germ oil. The omega-6 fatty acids occur in vegetable oils such as sunflower oil. The plant foods with the highest content of polyunsaturated linoleic acid are evening primrose, sunflower and safflower oil, and to a lesser degree maize and grapeseed oil. In general, plants contain less alpha-linolenic acid than linoleic acid.

Fatty acids, building blocks of our cell membranes

Our organism consists of countless cells, which are enveloped by membranes that consist of one third fatty acids. The cell membranes are the skin of the cells; they protect them and ensure the processes of communication and exchange with the other cells. Our skin is itself a super-membrane whose condition reflects that of all the other membranes. The type of fatty acids consumed determines their suppleness and thus their quality. Under the control of the membranes, the cells are supplied with nutrients, and cholesterol, hormones, mineral ions, neurotransmitters and enzymes are taken up or secreted. The condition of our membranes influences all our functions without exception, and their quality decides our balance of life. It reflects very precisely, alongside the body’s defences, the condition of the nervous system, retina, heart, vessels, gut, liver and kidneys. In their structure the membranes appear as veritable “fluid mosaics” of phospholipids and proteins, which are stabilised by cholesterol. The flow properties of these membranes depend entirely on the composition of the fatty acids of their phospholipids. Membranes with a larger proportion of so-called saturated fatty acids are compact and stiff, while those with sufficient unsaturated essential fatty acids are dynamic and efficient.

As photon catchers, the cold-protection lipids also allow adaptation to darkness. In humans, DHA is responsible for the perception of light in the retina and also plays an important role for the pineal gland, which is dependent on light, as well as for mental performance as such. Dysfunction of the pineal gland is the cause of winter depression. This most mobile of all omega-3 fatty acids is also the carrier of photosynthesis in plants. This is the reason why northern plants increase their omega-3 production during the long winter months with insufficient light. In general, this series of fatty acids is very important for everything that has to do biologically with light. All this must be borne in mind in order to understand how many benefits the intake of omega-3 fatty acids can offer for health.

The most important indications

From what has been said above it follows that the use of omega fatty acids is practically unlimited. The main areas, however, are: cardiovascular diseases, neurological disorders, disorders of concentration, memory and mood, chronic inflammatory processes of all kinds, irritable bowel, reduced visual acuity, ageing, skin diseases, rheumatism, type II diabetes, hormonal disorders, age spots and immunological diseases.

The test

The fatty acid analysis offers a precise examination of 30 (omega) fatty acids and calculates the important ratios between them, which among other things are decisive for inflammatory processes. This test is carried out on a fasting blood sample. In the laboratory, using a very elaborate procedure, the membranes of the red blood cells are then separated from the rest of the cell and analysed by means of computerised gas chromatography-mass spectrometry.

Use of the oils (without any assessment in terms of health)