OMEGA 3 AND GOOD INTESTINAL FUNCTION
Increasingly insistently, one hears Omega 3 being talked about inappropriately. It almost seems that the lack of Omega 3 causes pandemics, and all this was accentuated and amplified when the "Zone" diet trend arrived in Italy and since some researchers discovered that the use of Omega 3 helps prevent cardiovascular diseases.
It is known that saturated fatty acids oxidize with difficulty (rancidify slowly) and are solid at room temperature: animal fats, cured meats, butter. Monounsaturated fats, omega 9, solidify below 5 degrees Celsius: extra virgin olive oil, and it is better to consume them in the production year because they oxidize more easily. Polyunsaturated fats oxidize very easily and quickly (fish is rich in omega 3 and "smells" because it rancidifies quickly) and remain fluid even at low temperatures.
It is better to put a little order and understand that, as usual, "the truth lies in the middle" and our body needs saturated fatty acids, monounsaturated fatty acids, and polyunsaturated fatty acids in the right proportions. A lack of saturated fatty acids causes serious problems to nerve cells, likewise an excess consumption of Omega 6 (oil seeds) can cause an overproduction of arachidonic acid and thus trigger inflammatory reactions and important allergic reactions.
The normal diet of an Italian is usually rich in monounsaturated fatty acids (extra virgin olive oil) and saturated fats (animal fats including a good portion concentrated in butter).
As we all know, saturated fatty acids, if in excess, and this is the point, cause the production of inflammatory prostaglandins and inhibit the production of enzymes capable of metabolizing monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fatty acids (delta-6-desaturase and elongase) of types 3 and 6.
Americans, having a diet not based on the Mediterranean diet and olive oil, and on the contrary having a diet rich in saturated fatty acids, have partly lost the ability to properly metabolize polyunsaturated fatty acids; hence the tendency that teaches them to use EPA and DHA as a result of the transformation of Omega 3 in the body. The average American is therefore unable to transform the original essential fatty acids because they no longer have enzymes to transform them.
The Italian, thanks to a diet less rich in saturated fatty acids (compared to the American) and thanks to the use of olive oil, has not lost the transformation enzymes and it is therefore appropriate to teach him to take a proper proportion of Omega 9, 3, and 6. However, if we provide the Italian (as preached by the "Zone" diet and some cardiologists) supplementation of EPA and DHA, we force the body to lose the transformation enzymes, so in the medium term we will harm both the followers of this method and young heart patients (under 65 years) as well as newborns to whom integrative nutrients rich in EPA and DHA are prescribed.
It is fundamental to understand that our body requires an average intake of saturated fatty acids around 10% of the total lipids ingested, about 50% of omega 3 and 6 fatty acids, equally divided, and an intake of 40% omega 9 fatty acids, without substituting enzymatic transformations. Such a balanced lipid diet will partially prevent hypercholesterolemia.
So about 40% of good extra virgin olive oil, 25% of oil from oil seeds such as: sweet almonds, sesame, safflower, sunflower, corn, soy (both corn and soy must bear the label "non-GMO") which express omega 6, and 25% of de-erucicated rapeseed oil or better yet MECHANICALLY CRACKED FLAXSEEDS stored under inert gas to slow oxidation, very rich in Omega 3 par excellence. It is thought that 2 tablespoons of golden flaxseeds express about 4 grams of omega 3 (both linoleic and linolenic) and more than adequately cover the daily requirement.
Do not use flaxseed oil internally as it is toxic.
Our grandparents soaked flaxseeds overnight to make them swell and crack the outer coating which is gastro-resistant. The viscous gel-rich mush thus obtained was either used as a purgative for cows or as a poultice applied to the bronchi to reduce inflammation (bronchitis, pneumonia, etc.) thanks to the ability of omega 3 to stimulate the production of anti-inflammatory prostaglandins.
Today it is not appropriate to use these brown-colored seeds and ingest this repellent mush to retrain intestinal transit (43% fiber), to capture excess cholesterol, and to reduce colon inflammation by providing such precious omega 3. The Germans teach: for some time they have been using golden flaxseeds (richer in fiber), mechanically breaking them and storing them in bags under inert gas (slightly inflated and that do not let sunlight filter through, otherwise they would oxidize).
