The Intelligence of Omega Fats...AKA Dr. Stone (was) a Dummy

I was very average in school, had very poor basic recall/memory skills, and passed college by cramming all night until I could recite enough to pass the test, and of course forget it by the next day.  I sat in the back of the room and hid so I would never get called on.

Until…  After my first year of increasing omega three essential fatty acids, I said something I will never forget!  I said, “docosahexaenoic acid,” during a class to my patients.  It was like my brain finally “caught” the information I was giving it, and, to my own surprise, it was available for me to say, use, and even teach! 

Ever since that time, I sit in the front of the room during seminars, versus a lifetime of the very, very, very back seat…because it is fun when your brain captures information…and definitely not so fun when it doesn’t.  (Don’t call on me!)

When I started omega three’s, which are abundant in fish and flax, and some in walnuts and greens/grasses, the fact was that I hadn’t ever eaten an omega 3 in my life.  Seriously…I hated veggies well into my 20s, hated fish except for an occasional fish fry (deep fried oils will make you just as unable to catch information!), never heard of flax, and peanut butter was my only “nut” intake.  The rest of my diet was campbells soup, baloney sandwiches, cereal and milk (the good stuff, Cap’n Crunch), and tombstone pizza.

  

Go ahead, find an omega 3 in that diet!  

Here’s the story I heard…from a professor that knew a lot of big words…

Omega 3 oils must be in balance with omega 6 oils…ounce for ounce.  Most foods have some of each oil…omega 3, 6, and 9 (think olive oil).  I already mentioned the few foods with a higher ratio of omega 3’s…and it turns out that omega 6’s come from grains and seeds (except flax seed).  And the ratio of oils in these grains varies from 20 to 1 up to 60 to 1 (corn being the highest ratio).  

Professor smarty pants cited a study that showed that DISEASE IS GUARANTEED when the overall ratio of omega 6 to 3 reaches 4 to 1.  No, it is not the only cause of disease…but it WILL “light the fuse” to express your worst genetic potential.  And the higher the ratio, the faster you will achieve Grandpa’s disease.  

And light the fuse is exactly right.  At 4 times more omega 6’s than 3’s, it begins a cascade of inflammatory chemicals called prostaglandins and leukotrienes (who’s the smarty pants now?) that will cause a “sunburn” on your most genetically susceptible tissues…Intestines, muscles, joints…any –itis you can name (arthritis, gastritis, etc.).  And just like a sunburn makes your shoulders sensitive, inflammation makes whatever internal tissue it is affecting more sensitive…to foods, gravity, changes in weather, etc. 

In fact, I believe that the majority of people with gluten sensitivity or food allergies, are actually inflamed and sensitive…and some foods, like gluten, are more irritating to the intestinal lining (when sunburned), just like wool is a bit more scratchy on sensitive skin.  

So…keep your omega 3 to 6 ratio close to 1 to 1 and you defeat this inflammatory source, making you less sensitive…and more resilient.  PLUS…these fats build the “brain” of every cell in your body, including your brain cells.  It builds them more flexible (easier to catch information, hormones, and brain chemicals such as serotonin (the antidepressant chemical).  

In fact, Harvard medical published a study in 1997 showing that high dose fish oils caused greater “leveling out” of Bipolar patients than any of the current Medications!  

Another benefit…they are also helpful to cheat!  Think I avoid corn chips because they are so unbalanced!?!  Nope, I eat them and then take some extra fish oil to keep the balance.  (I generally get organic corn anything to avoid GMOs)  I add fish oils whenever my grain intake increases to keep the Omega 6 to 3 ratio under 4 to 1, and prevent activating my worst genetic potential. 

Some of the seeds that are appearing on the shelves more recently,…hemp and chia for example…are balanced sources of essential fatty acids.  I still haven’t incorporated them (I have tried the chia pudding, and adding the seeds to smoothies…but it was just too painful to form a habit)…so if you have a pleasurable (at least not painful) way of using them, let me know!