Food Focus: Essential Fatty Acids

Food Focus: Essential Fatty Acids

In a previous post, Food Focus: Oils and Fats I wrote about Healthy Fats. This post focuses on Essential Fatty Acids (EFA’s), which are an important component of a balanced nutrition plan. Here’s why:

  • They are necessary for building & protecting healthy cell membranes.
  • They surround your cells & keep water & nutrients inside while letting toxins & waste out.
  • They support the creation and maintenance of healthy skin cells. Healthy cells are plump, water filled cells with strong membranes.
  • When there’s not enough EFA’s in the system, the cells become weak. Weak skin cells can cause saggy skin, acne, dry skin.

The reason they are called Essential Fatty Acids is because they are essential for our health yet they are not produced by the body.

Examples of EFA’s are:

  • olive oil
  • walnuts
  • salmon & other wild fish
  • avocado
  • flax seed
  • coconut oil
  • organic grass-fed butter

Similar Posts

  • Food Focus: DATES

    Food Focus: DATES Dates are fruits that grow on date palms. They have been used since the times of Mesopotamia and ancient Egypt. Dates are very sweet and nutritionally packed essential nutrients, vitamins, and minerals. Dates are rich in dietary fiber and contain tannins (flavonoid antioxidants that are thought to have anti-inflammatory properties). In terms…

  • Food Focus: Sea Vegetables

    Food Focus: Sea Vegetables Sea Vegetables (This article appeared in the January, 2011 issue of A Healthy You). In traditional Chinese healing, sea vegetables correspond to the winter season and to the kidneys, adrenal glands, bladder and reproductive organs. The strengthening, balancing and cleansing properties of sea vegetables are known to help these organs as…

  • Food Focus: Chocolate

    Food Focus: Chocolate Ahhh! Chocolate! The thought of it can bring up certain emotions. Chocolate has been associated with love for generations. Almost everyone I know loves chocolate! Many of us have even been known to crave the stuff. But did you know that chocolate has many amazing health benefits? Cacao is high in iron,…

  • Food Focus: Walnuts

    Food Focus: Walnuts Walnuts are rich in protein and high in potassium, zinc and iron. They are the fruit from a tree in the walnut family Junglandaceae. Most of us are familiar with the “nut” which is found inside the hard shell. But did you know that other parts of the walnut tree have beneficial…