Food Focus: Essential Fatty Acids

ByRuthie Guten

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: Quinoa

    ByRuthie Guten

    Food Focus: Quinoa This article appeared in the March, 2011 issue of A Healthy You. Quinoa (pronounced keen-wah), is a nutritional powerhouse with ancient origins. It was originally cultivated by the Incas more than 5,000 years ago; they referred to it as the “mother of all grains.” It contains all nine essential amino acids, making it…

  • Spice Focus: Saffron

    ByRuthie Guten

    Spice Focus: Saffron  Saffron has been said to be the most expensive spice in the world.The spice is obtained from the stamens of the saffron crocus. The flowers are hand picked and the stamens are hand plucked, one at a time. The stamens are fine, red yellow threads. Much of the best saffron is grown…

  • Food Focus: Onion

    ByRuthie Guten

    Food Focus: Onion Onion: Onions (Allium cepa) belong to the lily family, the same family as garlic, chives, and shallots. Health Powers: Onion is effective against many bacteria including Bacillus subtilis, Salmonella, and E. coli. Onion extracts, rich in a variety of sulfides, provide some protection against tumor growth; and are used in relief treatment…

  • Food Focus: Fruit

    ByRuthie Guten

    Food Focus: Fruit (This article appeared in the June, 2011 edition of A Healthy You) A healthy lifestyle is the key to longevity, optimum weight, abundant energy and balance. By using fruit to satisfy our taste for sweetness, we can leave behind the use of chemical, processed and refined sweeteners. Fruits are easy to digest,…

  • Food Focus: Maple Syrup

    ByRuthie Guten

    Maple Syrup Maple syrup is the concentrated extract of the sap of maple trees. It adds a rich, deep flavor to foods and drinks. Make sure to look for 100% pure maple syrup, not maple-flavored corn syrup. As with all sweeteners, organic varieties are best. Adapted from “The Cane Mutiny,” New Age Magazine, March/April 1999.