All about essential fatty acids
Did you know ? The Japanese are less affected by cardiovascular diseases than others because they are heavy consumers of fatty fish.
Essential fatty acids are fats that the body can not synthesize and that only food can provide. They play a vital role in cell life and enhance immunity and blood clotting.
There are two families of essential fatty acids:
Omega 3, where only alpha linolenic acid (ALA) is essential. It is contained in rapeseed, soy or nut oils and in some fish such as mackerel, salmon, tuna, herring, sardines.
Omegas 6 where eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) is essential; sunflower oil, grape seed, evening primrose, borage. To be healthy, you must balance the intake of omega 3 with that of omega 6. Omega 6 promote cardiovascular health and prevent inflammatory diseases.
How to balance this contribution? In omega 3, the recommended daily intake (APR) is about 1.1 g. This equates to 22 ml of soybean oil. In Omega 6, the APR is 0.5g / day. This is the equivalent of 65 g farmed salmon or 130 g canned tuna.
Beware, if you consume excess omega 6, the action of omega 3 will cancel and you take the risk of developing certain diseases such as arthritis or asthma. The products that contain these essential fatty acids are not often of very good quality, the means of refining decrease the omega 3 content (industrial products).
Our advice:
Essential fatty acids can also be used as a substitute for your anti-wrinkle cream by using certain oils on the skin, such as borage or evening primrose oil, which will help you fight against skin aging.
