OMEGA-6'S IN ALMONDS, OLIVE OIL etc. ARE NOT THE
VILLAINS THEY ARE MADE OUT TO BE
We need to base our lives on FACTS, not myths, so please remember that I'm just reporting the facts here, so don't take umbrage with the reporter - instead go and debate with these good folks, who were involved in debunking the myth: Dr. Doug Bibus - an expert on fatty acid metabolism and a protege of Dr. William Lands the father of omega-3 research, AS WELL we have: The Channing Laboratory (D.M., A.A., F.B.H., M.J.S., W.C.W., E.B.R.), Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School, and the Departments of Nutrition and Epidemiology (D.M., A.A., F.B.H., M.J.S., W.C.W., E.B.R.), Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, Mass, and the Cardiovascular Health Research Unit (D.S.S.), Departments of Medicine and Epidemiology, University of Washington, Seattle, Wash. AND a 2007 Study published in The Journal of Cardiovascular Medicine.
We need to base our lives on FACTS, not myths, so please remember that I'm just reporting the facts here, so don't take umbrage with the reporter - instead go and debate with these good folks, who were involved in debunking the myth: Dr. Doug Bibus - an expert on fatty acid metabolism and a protege of Dr. William Lands the father of omega-3 research, AS WELL we have: The Channing Laboratory (D.M., A.A., F.B.H., M.J.S., W.C.W., E.B.R.), Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School, and the Departments of Nutrition and Epidemiology (D.M., A.A., F.B.H., M.J.S., W.C.W., E.B.R.), Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, Mass, and the Cardiovascular Health Research Unit (D.S.S.), Departments of Medicine and Epidemiology, University of Washington, Seattle, Wash. AND a 2007 Study published in The Journal of Cardiovascular Medicine.
We all feel instinctively that OLIVE OIL and
ALMONDS and ACAI BERRIES are HEART-HEALTHY - yet others say their imbalance of
OMEGA-6 vs 3 makes them not healthy!
However, we notice that cultures who eat those regularly have really
good heart health! So what's up? Rather
than make this emotional - let's go hunting for the facts!
And the facts are ... It turns out that people
who key on the ratio of Omega 3 to Omega 6 (and scare everyone silly with this
nebulous ratio) are indeed wrong. It's a myth, that was perpetuated without
hard scientific facts. Now that we have
those Scientific studies, it's clear that the ratio of Omega-6 vs 3, is almost
meaningless, according to the Journal of Cardiovascular Medicine. In fact from
the excerpt below you will see that trying to reduce Omega 6's in the diet will
likely increase insulin resistance, heart disease and diabetes. Here is the excerpt and copied immediately below for your convenience:
"n-6 Fatty acids, like n-3 fatty acids, play
essential roles in many biological functions. Because n-6 fatty acids are the
precursors of proinflammatory eicosanoids, higher intakes have been suggested
to be detrimental, and the ratio of n-6 to n-3 fatty acids has been suggested
by some to be particularly important. However, this hypothesis is based
on minimal evidence, and in humans higher intakes of n-6 fatty acids have not
been associated with elevated levels of inflammatory markers.
They go on to say: "n-6 Fatty acids have
long been known to reduce serum total and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol,
and increases in polyunsaturated fat intake, mostly as n-6 fatty acids, were a
cornerstone of dietary advice during the 1960s and 1970s. In the United States
FINALLY, and this is key! "Adequate intakes of both n-6 and n-3 fatty acids are essential for good
health and low rates of cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes, but the
ratio of these fatty acids is not useful. Reductions of linoleic acid (Omega-6)
to improve this ratio would likely increase rates of cardiovascular disease and
diabetes." (Folks this is key! Can you see it?)
"When we assessed the risk of CHD according
to joint intakes of EPA+DHA and n-6 fatty acids, higher EPA+DHA intake was
associated with a lower risk of sudden death regardless of n-6 PUFA
intake."
So it is clear from this excerpt, that as
long as one is getting sufficient Omega-3's (from grass-fed beef, leafy green
vegetables, walnuts, chia seeds, flax (I'm not a fan of this last option), fish, salmon oil
capsules, etc.) then it doesn't matter how much Omega 6's you eat (BUT this
becomes clearer as you read on)!
Here it is in the conclusion: "Conclusions—
n-3 PUFAs from both seafood and plant sources may reduce CHD risk, with little
apparent influence from background n-6 PUFA intake."
It seems the problem arrives when people have too
little Omega-3's in their diet. So make
sure you have enough Omega-3's and don't worry about the Omega-6's so
much. So it's not the same issue
that some make it out to be.
AND
Finally this from the in-depth HUGE 2 decades long study: "When joint intakes of ALA (n-3 fatty
acids) and n-6 fatty acids were assessed, higher ALA intake was associated with
lower risk or trends toward a lower risk of nonfatal MI, whether n-6 PUFA
intake was lower (HR=0.85; 95% CI=0.72 to 0.99) or higher (HR=0.89; 95% CI=0.77
to 1.02) and with a lower risk of total CHD, whether n-6 PUFA intake was
lower (HR=0.88; 95% CI=0.78 to 0.99) or higher (HR=0.89; 95% CI=0.79 to 0.99)
(multivariate model, Table 3)."
So make sure you get enough Omega-3's - bottom
line!
There doesn't seem to be as much panic about how much Omega-6's one consumes.
There doesn't seem to be as much panic about how much Omega-6's one consumes.
So, why are people getting bent out of shape
about how much Omega-6's they are consuming?
It's quite apparent from these studies that people should not worry and
low-carbers can enjoy their almond flour treats in without a care in the
world. That is good news among the
recent scare stories of too much Omega-6 in nuts on the internet. For low-carbers, desserts can be a part of our diet and, and almond flour in desserts
has been key since forever practically. Now that
high-protein wheat is off our list of flours, we do not have a lot of good
options. We have yet to find something better. Folks who get off the white sugar and white
flour always find their health improves and folks with diabetes often become
latent diabetics. Cholesterol markers improve. Remember almonds are incredibly heart
healthy. They reduce LDL cholesterol and prevent the forming of blood clots
which can lead to a fatal heart attack.
Are
there any cautions? Yes - With Olive oil, Almonds and so many other healthy
foods that contain Omega-6's, we do have to be a little careful not to overheat
them, try to stay at or below 375 deg. F or lower, as Omega-6's can start to break down under
extreme heat - but do
remember almond flour is usually combined with a lot of moisture in our baked
goodies. Typically when we bake we use a moderate oven at 350 deg. F. (180 deg.
C.) and the almond flour is bathed in eggs, butter or oil and other wet or
liquid ingredients, so it is well protected.
Okay, here is a breakdown of the PUFA's in my
Splendid Gluten-Free Bake Mix: A full batch is 320 grams and there are only
23.8 grams PUFA's in the entire bake mix. Remember when baking, we normally use
even less than a full batch of bake mix in any one recipe, so typically we are getting a small fraction of that - much less than 23.8 grams, which
is very little anyhow. So, remember to take your Omega-3 salmon or Krill oil
capsules, and you're going to be just fine! So enjoy
your almond flour and your olive oil and your low-carb
baking, without worrying.
MY BAKE MIX:
ALMOND FLOUR - 182 grams, 1.67 cups
OAT FLOUR - 100 grams, 0.75 cup
COCONUT FLOUR - 38 grams, 0.25 cup
TOTAL --------> 320 grams 2.67 cups
182g of ALMOND FLOUR has in it:
OVERVIEW
Energy (kJ):
4,596.2 kJ
Energy (cal):
1,098.5 cal
Protein:
36.4 g
Fat:
100.5 g
-Saturated Fat:
6.6 g
-Mono-Unsaturated Fat:
65.5 g
-Poly-Unsaturated Fat:
23.8 g
Carbohydrate:
8.0 g
-Complex Carbs:
0.0 g
-Sugar:
8.0 g
Fibre:
16.0 g
Water Content:
6.7 mL