An Essential Fatty Acid (EFA)

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There are three types of omega-3 essential fatty acids:

• ALA: Alpha-linolenic acid (plant-based such as that found in chia) 
• EPA: Eicosapentaenoic acid } animal based 
• DHA: Docosahexaenoic acid } animal based 

In the 1980s, there was a surge of attention focused on fish and fish oil as the highest-quality source of omega-3. It was not until flax seed and linseed oil became popular that ALA began to gain attention too. With the re-introduction of chia as a new and better source, more studies on chia and ALA can be expected.

WHY IS THIS IMPORTANT?

Here’s why chia, as a source of Omega-3 EFA, is so crucial. In fact, without sufficient Omega-3 in our bodies, our brain would not be getting their share of this essential fatty acid. Our brain lives on omega-3, and insufficient amounts of it is now being blamed for most, if not all, brain degeneration illnesses like Parkinson's Disease and Demential.

1. Without EFA, the human body simply cannot function properly. 

2. Sources of EFA, whether ALA, EPA or DHA are always important because our bodies are unable to manufacture them, and so we must source them from food.  

3. Other sources of EFAs like flaxseed are easily damaged by heat, light, and oxygen. Oxidation in food, as we know, can promote diseases like cancer, cardiovascular diseases, cataracts, a decline in immune system and brain dysfunction. But Chia’s natural antioxidants keep the omega-3 fatty acid stable and prevent the seeds from going rancid.  

4. Fish, a high source of omega-3 EFA, has wonderful health benefits but can also contain levels of mercury and other toxic substances that could be harmful to pregnant women and children. 

So what’s so essential about Omega-3 EFAs?

• They attract oxygen. The more EFAs we eat, the more oxygen is carried by the blood to the cells. This is essential for energy, healing and overall wellness  
• Promotes healthy sleep patterns and mood  
• Increase our ability to utilize sunlight to increase oxygen activity  
• Energy created by EFAs produce bio-electrical currents that stimulate healthy nerve, muscle and membrane function  
• Improve cardiovascular health  
• Help strengthen the immune system which fight infection and build resistance to diseases and allergies  
• Boost brain power, improves mental focus and concentration and may aid patients suffering from depression and anxiety, schizophrenia, Huntington’s disease, and bipolar disorders 
• Are curative and speed up recovery time after exercise, sport, physical work and illness  
• Increase the body’s metabolic rate leading to fat burn and loss of excess weight  
• Source of energy, strength and endurance  
• Disperse fatty acids and cholesterol in the bloodstream, which helps prevent arteries from clogging  
• Have a blood thinning effect and discourage excessive blood clotting  
• Lower the blood-triglyceride level and raise the level of high-density lipoproteins (HDLs) the good lipoproteins that help prevent cholesterol buildup in the arteries.  
• Have an anti-inflammatory effect  
• Benefits have also been reported in rheumatoid arthritis and  circulatory problems 
• Have anti-cancer effects, reducing risk (of breast cancer), reducing tumor growth (prostate), slowed cancer progression and increased patient survival.  
• In children, Omega-3 fatty acid has shown to alleviate mental disorders such as aggression and ADHD.  

Omega-3/Omega-6 Balance

Just like Omega-3s, adequate Omega-6 EFAs are needed for healthy human living. But there has to be a balance of Omega 6 and Omega 3. We should have more of the Omega 3s than Omega 6s. Nutrition experts say a healthy ratio of Omega-3 to Omega-6 in a diet ranges between 1:1 and 1:3, but the typical Western diet has a ratio of up to 30X the amount of Omega-6 than Omega-3 (a ratio of 1:15 to 1:30). 

It is well documented that excessive amounts of omega-6 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) and a very high omega-6/omega-3 ratio, as is found in today's modern diets, promote many diseases, including cardiovascular disease, cancer, and inflammatory and autoimmune diseases. 

The problem in today’s supermarkets is that this imbalance is prevalent in almost all food items on the shelves, in all processed foods, and in nearly all vegetable oils - margarine, corn, soy, peanut, palm, grape seed, sesame, sunflower, safflower, almond, and wheat germ oils. Corn oil can in fact be so skewed at 1:50 in favor of Omega-6.

Chia seed, on the other hand, has a ratio of 1:3, which means it has three times the amount of Omega-3 than Omega-6 in its structure. By adding chia in your daily diet, you will balance out the ratio of fatty acid intake, leaving you with a healthier brain function, cardiovascular system, and oxygen saturation. 

Confused about fish omega-3 and plant based omega 3? Read this.

Chia and Its Antioxidants