PUFA Foods and Sources – Nutritional Wolves in Sheeps Clothing

Death and disease by PUFA

All PUFA are not created equal and although many have been discovered to be extremely bad for us, in excess, there are a few well-known super supplements that actually fall under the category of PUFA. We’ll get into that shortly.

Most things are more complex than simple black and white and PUFA are no different. In fact, small amounts (and/or proportional amounts) of the so-called “bad” PUFA are actually essential for human health and are very beneficial.

Excessive amounts, however, lead to nasty diseases like arthritis, Crohn’s disease and even colorectal cancer. As with most health repercussions we’ve endured as a consequence of being hopelessly ignorant, while wielding the power to manipulate nature, we have once again catastrophically disrupted a dietary balance.

Many of us have never heard of PUFA, let alone know what foods they’re hiding in. I’ll explain what PUFA is/are, examine the sources of PUFA and discuss common foods they are hidden in. We’ll also distinguish between “good” and “bad” PUFA while explaining the importance of their proper balance.

PUFAs are found in many of our foods but we must understand them before we eliminate them

… and the list goes on

What in the heck is a PUFA?

A PUFA is a polyunsaturated fatty acid. Vegetable oils are their most common source.

Even if we aren’t cooking with these vegetable oils they are still contained in a majority of the packaged foods we buy.

“Good” PUFA

Omega-3 fatty acids and many other essential fatty acids are actually polyunsaturated fatty acids. These are the healthy fats found in fish oil, with EPA (eicosapentaenoic acid) and DHA (docosahexaenoic acid) being the most popular and beneficial that we know of. They are anti-inflammatory, cardioprotective, brain healthy and help maintain good hair, skin and nails among other things.

“Bad” PUFA

Omega-6 fatty acids are the big bad wolves hiding out in sheep’s clothing. Once put on a pedestal and touted as the answer for heart disease, these fatty acids are proving to be an all-out disaster to our health. They single-handedly can be attributed to a whole host of nasty conditions and diseases. When consumed in excess they are pro-inflammatory substances that result in atherosclerosis, asthma, arthritis (and other inflammatory autoimmune disorders), vascular disease, thrombosis, and tumor proliferation.

Technology and the advent of vegetable oils

The progress of technology and medicinal science has afforded us many revolutionary breakthroughs that have helped us increase our lifespans and quality of life but we also have been introduced to many unnatural things.

Cottonseed oil is a good example. Would you sit down and start eating cotton seeds? You probably didn’t even know they were edible. No you wouldn’t and neither would your ancestors. Well, cottonseed oil is in about everything that has a wrapper on it and it’s 50% omega-6 fatty acids as you see from the table above.

Modern technology has the power to extract compounds that we then eat in concentrations that our species has never been accustomed to. Sometimes these discoveries are beneficial but many times they result in unintended consequences.

We must consume the proper ratio of omega-6 to omega-3 fatty acids to avoid disease

Anthropological research has been accumulated to suggest that in terms of our evolutionary dietary adaptation, our ancestors ate a diet that was close to 1:1 or an equal amount of omega-6 fatty acids to omega-3 fatty acids. Today the average western diet is said to have a ratio of around 15:1!

The balance of these two fatty acids is terribly off. A study reported the abatement of various diseases and cancers occuring after subjects omega-6 to omega-3 ratio fell below certain levels. [1] Here is a quote from the study:

Excessive amounts of omega-6 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) and a very high omega-6/omega-3 ratio, as is found in today’s Western diets, promote the pathogenesis of many diseases, including cardiovascular disease, cancer, and inflammatory and autoimmune diseases, whereas increased levels of omega-3 PUFA (a low omega-6/omega-3 ratio) exert suppressive effects.

Omega-6 PUFA are pro-inflammatory and numerous published scientific studies point to their disastrous cascade of illness and malady.

How to decrease bad PUFA?

1. Less Processed Foods – Next time you are in the grocery store look at the back of a candy bar, cereal bar or anything in a box or package for that matter. You more than likely will see cottonseed oil, soybean oil, safflower oil or corn oil. All are huge carriers of omega-6 bad PUFA. Cut these products out of your diet.
2. Increase Fish Oil / Omega-3 – Omega-3 fatty acids are very beneficial to your health, protecting and fortifying your heart, brain, skin,eyes and nails but it also offsets bad PUFA (omega-6).
3. More Whole Foods – Whole foods are fruits, vegetables, cultured/fermented foods and things that have no or minimal processing. Straight from the tree to the table.
4. Nuts in Moderation – Many nuts including walnuts, peanuts, sunflower seeds have a high amount of omega-6 PUFA in them but they are within a whole food. They are balanced with fat, protein, carbohydrates and antioxidants. However, these were meant to be more snacks and less of an entire meal. Enjoy a handful here and there but don’t gorge yourself.
5. Use Cooking Oils with Low Omega-6 – Avoid cooking with cottonseed, safflower, corn, peanut, soybean, sunflower, sesame, walnut oils. Instead use butter, coconut oil and olive oil. Canola oil is okay; it contains omega-6 fatty acids but is only at about a 2:1 (omega-6 to omega-3) ratio, which isn’t too bad. Use it sparingly. If trying to heal an inflammatory disease I recommend cutting canola altogether.

Caveat: Healthier Foods that Contain Omega-6

Even healthier foods can have high amounts of omega-6. It’s important to not automatically chuck all these out the window just because of the omega-6 content but I think they’re also important to be aware of.