Vegan Fats Of Life by Patty "Sassy" Knutson

Vegan Fats Of Life
By Patty "Sassy" Knutson

Fats. They're so misunderstood. We shun them! We avoid them! We do everything in our power to keep them at a distance. We buy reduced-fat, low-fat and no-fat products to keep that fat as far away as possible.

Fats be gone!!

But then, without warning, we find ourselves reaching for fatty foods...chips, French fries, candy, ice cream. Ack! It's like something inside takes over and we are helpless to stop ourselves. Guess what? It's not your fault. There's a very good reason for this.

In The Beginning…

Let's think back to our ancestors, those strong, silent types. Back then, they instinctively went in search of foods that could supply them with the greatest amounts of energy. Mother Nature helped out by making foods that supplied the greatest amounts of energy taste good so we would be more inclined to eat them. Oh, those Moms -- always taking care of us.

Which foods provided the highest amounts of energy? Sugars and fats from whole food sources. Fruits and veggies gave our ancestors sugar. Nuts, seeds and fish gave them fats.

Fast-forward to present. Natural sugars and fats, the kind found in whole foods, continue to provide the highest amounts of energy for your body. BUT (and that's a big but!), now you are receiving your sugars and fats from a different source entirely.

An Uphill Battle

You see, the companies that manufacture our foods met the demand of consumers by creating affordable food that would last longer on the shelves and be safe from contamination by microorganisms. Most of these processed and refined foods, however, were high in calories and missing the necessary nutrients we require, like proteins, vitamins and minerals.

And these processed foods tasted terrible! These companies can't turn a good profit if the food doesn't taste good, right? So guess what they did to solve this problem? They said "let's find a way to isolate these great tasting sugars and fats and stuff those into these nutrient-devoid foods!" And that's exactly what they did. These nutrient-devoid, high sugar and high fat packaged and processed foods line your grocery shelves. No wonder keeping your weight under control is such an uphill battle. You are biologically programmed to reach for these foods. Oy!

The Skinny On Fats

There is a big difference between the fats our ancestors enjoyed and those we reach for today. For one thing, the fats our ancestors enjoyed were part of a complete package...the whole food.

These whole foods were filled with Essential Fatty Acids.

Surely you've heard of them, but if you're like most people, you don't have any idea what they are or how important they are for you to know about.

Do you suffer from:

•   Dry hair and skin?
•   Unhealthy nails which are prone to breakage?
•   Dandruff? Hair loss?
•   High cholesterol?
•   High blood pressure?
•   PMS or breast pain?
•   Water retention?
•   Weight gain?
•   Memory and learning difficulties?
•   Lack of coordination or impaired vision?

These are just a few of the signs of a possible Essential Fatty Acid deficiency.

Essential Fatty Acids nourish your skin, hair and nails, help to strengthen the immune system, and bring your body to its natural weight, along with a host of other wonderful benefits.

Fatty acids fall into the category of essential or non-essential.

Non-essential means it is "not essential" (not required) that you figure out a way to get them into your body. Your body will create these Non-Essential Fatty Acids for you.

There, wasn't that easy?

The Essential Fatty Acids are something different entirely. They are called essential because you MUST get them from your diet. It is "essential" (required) that you find a way to get these into your body. Essential Fatty Acids are vital components that your body needs for many functions. Vegans can find them most readily in the seeds of plants.

Now that we’ve covered the importance of Essential Fatty Acids in the vegan diet, let’s switch gears for a second. Remember when we said there was a big difference between the fats our ancestors ate and the fats most people eat today?

Let's begin with an analogy...

Let’s Play Jump Rope

Imagine you and a friend are holding either end of a jump rope (hey, who says we have to grow up?). In order for it to work properly, you let it dangle loosely between you -- now we can have some fun! But if you pull it taut, the fun is over.

This analogy will serve to create a picture in your mind as we further discuss fats.

All fat molecules are composed of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen atoms. The carbon atoms of fatty acids hold together in a chain-like fashion. These oxygen/carbon chains can attach hydrogen to them at specific points (called receptor points).

Saturated Fats

When each place that can possibly hold a hydrogen atom is filled they are called "saturated". They're full. They don't have room for even one more.

These saturated fats are hard fats. The jump rope has been pulled taut...tight and hard. These are fats which are solid at room temperature, such as those found in meat, butter, cheese, and sour cream. Fortunately for us Vegans, we don’t touch the stuff! But does this mean your diet is free from saturated fats? Not necessarily…

Saturated fats can be found in Vegan food too, including coconut products*, palm oil and tropical oils. And for those who think eating margarine is okay, think again. Margarine is hydrogenated (which we’ll discuss below) and this hydrogenation process actually converts the fats to something that ACTS like saturated fats in the body. So if you’re eating any foods which contain hydrogenated oils, you’re ingesting the very saturated fats you’re trying to avoid by eating Vegan in the first place! Oy!

When your diet is high in saturated fats or hydrogenated oils, these fats tend to clump together in the body and form deposits. This is because, just as they are hard at room temperature, they are also hard at body temperature. They can lodge in the cells, organs, and blood vessels. This can lead to many health problems including obesity, heart disease, and breast and colon cancer.

* Recent research suggests that coconut oil is a unique medium-chain saturated fat that may actually provide your body with energy versus clogging your arteries. Please do your own research and come to your own conclusions.

Unsaturated Fats

Unsaturated fats have at least two carbon atoms that are next to each other which are not attached to hydrogen atoms. This allows it to bend, leaving the rest of the chain to loosely rotate around this kink. Remember our tightened jump rope, saturated fat? Now, as an unsaturated fat that jump rope is getting less taut and more free to move.

When you ingest unsaturated fats, they actually replace the saturated fats in your body.

There are two kinds of these unsaturated fats. One is monosaturated and one is polyunsaturated. Let's look at these two unsaturated fats a little more closely...

When at least two pairs of receptor points are empty (meaning they do not have hydrogen attached), they are called monosaturated fats, like the kind found in olive oil. When at least two or more pairs of receptor points are empty, those molecules are called polyunsaturated fats. Our jump rope is loose and free to move about – wheeeeeeeeee!!

But not all polyunsaturated fats are equal. Some, like the kind found in safflower and canola oil, should be used sparingly, if at all. The best polyunsaturates are the kind that ALSO includes Essential Fatty Acids.

Now that we’ve covered the importance of Essential Fatty Acids in the Vegan diet, and the difference between the different types of fats, let's round this discussion out by focusing on the healthy Essential Fatty Acids.

They're called the Omegas, specifically Omega 3 and Omega 6.

Why should you care about these important fats? As you learned earlier, Essential Fatty Acids nourish your skin, hair, and nails. They also help to strengthen the immune system. And if that’s not enough, they also prevent the growth of bacteria and viruses, which will not thrive in the presence of these oxygen-holding fats. Eating Essential Fatty Acids also helps to increase the rate at which the body burns fat, bringing your body to its natural weight. In fact, there are so many wonderful benefits to eating the right fats that it's hard to narrow it down for our purposes here!

The Real Secret: Prostaglandins

There are two main polyunsaturated fats, and they are called Omega 6 (linoleic) and Omega 3 (linolenic). When you eat these healthy fats, your body immediately goes to work to magically transform them into extremely active hormone-like substances called prostaglandins.

These prostaglandins are the outcome of a conversion that takes place in your body as a result of eating these polyunsaturated fats.

When you eat foods containing Omega 6 fats, your body will break these down into more "active" substances, becoming more and more unsaturated as they go along. (And as we've already learned, the more unsaturated, the better.) Eventually, they are transformed into Series 1 prostaglandins.

Ah-ha! Now we are getting to the great benefit of these fats...
Series 1 prostaglandins are essential for healthy blood, such as keeping the blood thin (which prevents clots and blockages), relaxing blood vessels, and lowering blood pressure, among other things.

When you eat food containing Omega 3 fats, your body will break these down into more "active" substances, also becoming more and more unsaturated as it goes along (just like the Omega 6’s).

However, the Omega 3's are eventually transformed into Series 3 prostaglandins. These are essential for proper brain function and coordination, among other things.

So in order to put your body to work making these ultra-important prostaglandins, it's vital to eat the Omega 3's and 6's that will create them.

Currently, researchers are advising that we ingest twice as many Omega 6 fats as Omega 3 Essential Fatty Acids. There’s a bit of confusion out there about Omega 6 fats. Omega 6 fats are very important to our diet, but the trick is to be sure you’re eating the healthy Omega 6 fats.

What is the easiest way to ensure you are eating the foods which contain these healthy Omegas and in the proper amounts you need.

One way to meet the needs for both Omega 3 and healthy Omega 6 Essential Fatty Acids is to combine seeds. Sunflower and sesame seeds are good sources of Omega 6, pumpkin seeds provide reasonable quantities of both, while flax seeds are the richest in Omega 3 (containing 50% Omega 3 and 10% Omega 6).

So when you put them all together, you end up with twice as much Omega 6 as Omega 3 Essential Fatty Acids, the perfect ratio you're searching for.

Your Mission…

…should you choose to accept it:

Combine seeds for the perfect amounts of healthy Omega 6 and Omega 3 Essential Fatty Acids.

Mix 2 parts flax seeds with one part each sunflower,, sesame and pumpkin seeds. The easiest, most delicious and most satisfying way to eat these seeds is to grind two tablespoons per day in a coffee grinder and add them to your daily salad or vegetable dishes. (If you're a fan of nutritional yeast, add some to "up" the flavor and nutritional value.) Be sure to keep your seeds away from heat, light and the air. I keep mine in the freezer.

Alternatively, just add one tablespoon of seeds, and make up the difference with a salad dressing using one tablespoon of cold-pressed hemp seed oil (yes, it's from the marijuana plant, but it won't give you the munchies). Hemp seed oil contains 59% Omega 6 and 19% Omega 3 Essential Fatty Acids, meaning twice the amount of HEALTHY Omega 6's, just as current research recommends. (Always choose cold-pressed oils...the cold pressing prevents damage to the Essential Fatty Acids caused by heat processing.) Be sure the cold-pressed oils you buy are made from organic seeds. Your oil should come in a light-proof container to protect it and keep it fresh.

So now you know how to stock your body with the all-important Omega Essential Fatty Acids.

Yay!

But there's just one more thing that you need to be aware of…

da...da...da...dummmmm

TRANS FATS
EEEEEK!

You have probably heard of “refined oils”, but you may not know how truly unhealthy refining can be. The refining and processing of vegetable oils can change the very nature of the polyunsaturated oils.

For example, how is margarine made? The vegetable oil is turned into a hard fat. This process is called "hydrogenation". Although the fat is still technically polyunsaturated, the body cannot make use of it. Even worse, it blocks the body's ability to use healthy polyunsaturated oils (Essential Fatty Acids). This kind of fat is called a "trans" fat because its nature has been changed.

Trans fats are like little monsters. They are kinked -- like the unsaturated variety of Essential Fatty Acids -- but those kinks occur artificially. Further, these kinked fats are not flexible and are permanently bent in this position. Their permanent shape is not found in nature, so they can wreak havoc in your body.

Avoid refined and processed oils; avoid those hard "saturated" fats; avoid fried foods, burnt or browned fat; avoid all hydrogenated and trans fats. They can lead to many degenerative diseases. In general, if something is processed, it stands a better chance of holding onto those fats you want to avoid. Check those labels!!

Instead, eat those healthy Essential Fatty Acids and watch your skin, hair and nails change before your very eyes. Watch as your body steadily moves to its natural weight. Watch your health and immune system become stronger. Watch as your memory improves.

Fats are good for you. Three cheers for fats!

About the author:

Sassy (a longtime Vegan) is a Vegan Chef and Nutritional Consultant.

Her website http://www.VeganCoach.com was created to marry these two loves, along with over a decade of vegan experience, by teaching her fellow vegans the secret to balanced vegan nutrition and easy vegan cooking without recipes.

Pop on in for a visit. ;O)

Copyright © 2007 by Patty “Sassy” Knutson
All rights reserved.
No part of this article may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews. Thank you.