We have all heard by now that fat can be good for you and it’s not always the enemy it was portrayed to be. Starting from the 1950’s with the “fat free” movement, foods were stripped of fat and replaced with high amounts of sugar. However, fat is actually essential to our health in a myriad of ways, and we are now seeing the ramifications of that deficient diet in people who have grown up in the “fat free” era. Not all fat are the same and I would like to help guide you as to which ones you need and which ones to avoid.
Saturated fats are the healthy fat found in products like butter, cheese, coconut oil, avocados, egg yolks, nuts, whole raw milk, and meats.
What? Butter, cheese, and meats can be good sources of healthy saturated fat? That is correct!However, as Dr. Mercola says, “you must be vigilant against hydrogenated vegetable and seed oils, which are unsaturated fats that have been artificially manipulated into saturated fats. These are also known as trans fats, which interfere with your insulin receptors and put you at risk of chronic diseases like cancer, heart disease, and diabetes. It’s the trans fats found in margarine, vegetable shortening, and partially hydrogenated vegetable oils used in low-quality products that are to blame (the confusion about healthy vs. unhealthy fats). These are the unhealthy fats that you must avoid at all costs.” *
Why are healthy fats so important? Well, you need fat to make brain tissue, nerve tissue, and all the vessels in your body. In fact, 60% of your brain is made of fat, and half of that fat is from docosahexaenoic acid (DHA). DHA along with its partner eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) are found in Omega 3s. We find Omega3s in wild organic animals, especially fatty fish like salmon.
Unfortunately, the majority of Americans do not get enough good fats in their diets. Unless you eat fish a couple times a day, and only eat wild pasture animals, you are probably deficient in Omega 3s. The best solution we have to correct our deficiency is supplementing with fish oil. Obviously not all fish oils are the same. So you need one that is very high quality in order to get the most from the oil and avoid toxicity.
At Platinum Chiropractic we focus on Neuro-Structural Correction. This requires us to make sure your nervous system has the proper building blocks to heal and create healthy nerve tissue, while we are correcting it. That is why we recommend Protocol for Life Balance Ultra Omega-3. It is the highest quality fish oil with minimal processing. Our fish oil also has a natural and proper balance of EPA to DHA ratio, which your body recognizes as fish and absorbs it with ease.
* http://www.mercola.com/nutritionplan/beginner_fats.htm