Omega-6 and omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) are essential for normal functioning of all the tissues of the body. Fatty acid deficiencies can cause dry skin, depression, and serious disease such as dementia with aging.23
Omega-3 fatty acids are the fats that are more difficult to find in the SAD. They are found in leafy green vegetables, flaxseeds, chia seeds, hemp seeds, walnuts, and seafood. Alpha-linolenic acid (ALA), a short-chain omega-3 fat, is the building block for the body to make EPA and DHA, which are commonly found in seafood. EPA and DHA are the longer-chain omega-3 fats that have anti-inflammatory effects and are necessary for brain growth and repair. Optimal brain function requires adequate DHA, which makes up 8 percent of the total volume of a healthy brain.
Omega-6 fatty acids are another family of PUFAs that are considered essential for the body, yet they are harmful in excess. The shortest of this class of fats (the building block) is linoleic acid (LA). Examples of oils that contain omega-6 fat are corn oil, soybean oil, and canola oil. It is generally recognized that excess omega-6 fat (in relation to omega-3 fat) is pro-inflammatory and accelerates common diseases, such as heart disease and cancer.24
The SAD has way too much omega-6 fat and too little omega-3 fat, mainly because of the oils used in cooking. The average American consumes more than 400 calories a day of omega-6–rich oils. It is estimated that the modern diet has a ratio of omega-6 to omega-3 fatty acids of approximately 15 to 1, but for people who eat fast food regularly, the ratio can be as dangerous as 25 to 1. Our cells, and particularly brain cells, need omega-3 fats impregnated in the cell membranes for normal function. The more omega-6 PUFAs you consume, the heavier you become and the more omega-3 PUFAs you need to consume for cell membranes to be healthy and tissue levels to be adequate.
SATURATED FATS IN ANIMAL PRODUCTS ARE NOT HARMLESS
An extremely powerful recent study showed that the saturated fat found in meat and cheese is likely the most dangerous type of fat to eat (excluding, of course, trans fats, which will be outlawed by 2018).25 The researchers followed 125,000 male and female health professionals for more than thirty years, recording more than 33,000 deaths during this period. Replacing 5 percent of calories from saturated fat with polyunsaturated oils was associated with a 27 percent decrease in deaths, clearly demonstrating that saturated fat intake is more harmful than getting fats from vegetable and seed oils.
In recent years, certain studies have been publicized which concluded that greater intake of saturated fat was not associated with the risk of heart disease. However, these studies did not take into account what people were eating instead of food rich in saturated fats—often equally dangerous, high-glycemic refined carbohydrates.26 These recent findings have been tremendously misinterpreted, and a huge push to deny the effect of diet on health and longevity has resulted. This misinformation is widespread and dangerous. Far too many doctors, programs, websites, and other information outlets are emphasizing these dangerous high-fat diets. Even the acclaimed cookbook author and former New York Times op-ed writer Mark Bittman declared, “Butter Is Back,” and the June 23, 2014, issue of Time magazine had “Eat Butter” on its cover.27 Poor scientific studies and irresponsible media continue to propagate this dangerous myth and in turn are contributing to thousands of needless deaths.
Adding to this confusion are recent scientific studies that indicate it is not merely the saturated fats in meat and cheese that promote heart disease, but also excess omega-6 fats in oils.28 When researchers investigated findings of numerous randomized controlled trials that replaced saturated fats (butter, lard, cream, etc.) with vegetable oils, they found little difference in age of death. This large and detailed analysis of earlier data demonstrated that corn oil, safflower oil, soybean oil, canola oil, sunflower oil, and even olive oil damage the arteries and increase risk of death from heart disease and lead to earlier deaths. Some people have interpreted such data to mean that saturated fats such as butter are not as bad as we thought, but the science demonstrates otherwise: Both saturated fats and excess consumption of oils high in omega-6 fatty acids are harmful. And when any of these fats or oils is consumed in conjunction with sugar (or other high-glycemic carbohydrates), the dangerous effects are multiplied dramatically.
The point is that neither saturated fats nor vegetable oils have passed the test for safety. This is even partially true for olive oil, the linchpin of the supposedly healthy Mediterranean diet. For example, the findings of a study looking at the health of blood vessel linings (the endothelium) after a meal high in olive oil had surprising results demonstrating a decline in blood flow and increase in inflammation. The lead researcher, Dr. Robert Vogel, a cardiologist at the University of Maryland Hospital, concluded from the data “that it is not the olive oil that is the vasoprotective part of the Mediterranean diet [the part that helps keep blood vessels healthy]. It is the natural antioxidants [in fruits and vegetables] and the omega-3 fatty acids.”29
In contrast, consuming one’s fat mostly in the form of nuts and seeds protects the heart. When fats come from whole foods such as whole grains and nuts and seeds, instead of oils extracted from those foods, the presence of fat-binding fibers slows the absorption of the fat calories, enabling them to be burned for energy rather than stored as fat. Plus, because of the magnetic effect between the fiber and the fat in nuts and seeds, a significant amount of calories passes through the body into the toilet with that fiber and therefore is lost.30
OILS AND DEATH
The health benefits of nuts and seeds disappear when the nuts and seeds are processed and reduced to oils, which changes a weight-favorable food (the nuts and seeds) to an obesity-promoting food (the oils). Oils are not natural foods; they are highly processed foods. This change from consuming the whole foods to consuming the processed oils derived from those foods fundamentally affects behavior on a global scale. The increase in worldwide consumption of high–omega-6 oils over the past century is a large uncontrolled experiment that has shown increased societal burdens of aggression, depression, and cardiovascular mortality.
The danger of all this oil is seen best in the U.S. South, where oil consumption and fried foods are at their worst. People there regularly eat a traditional “Southern” diet that is known for its many deep-fried foods (such as fried chicken), processed meats (like bacon and ham), sugary beverages, and biscuits and gravy. With this diet, Southerners have earned the highest rates of stroke and heart disease in the world.
The large REGARDS (Reasons for Geographic and Racial Differences in Stroke) study addressed this issue by following more than twenty thousand study participants. Researchers found that, compared with other parts of the United States, the area of the country encompassing Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Virginia had a whopping 41 percent increased risk of stroke and 56 percent increased risk of heart attacks, and fried foods are highly implicated. And African Americans in these Southern states have the highest risk—an incredible 63 percent higher incidence of acute cardiovascular events compared with people who abstain from fried foods.31
Common cooking oils are very high in omega-6 fats and very low in omega-3 fats. Humans can make some beneficial EPA and DHA fat (a long-chain omega-3, needed for brain cell membranes) from the short-chain omega-3 found in walnuts and seeds, such as flaxseeds and chia seeds. However, omega-6 oils compete for the same conversion enzymes, so the more omega-6 consumed, the less DHA is produced by the body, and the worse the ratio of omega-6 to omega-3 becomes in cell membranes.
More omega-6 intake More inflammation
Less omega-6 intake Less inflammation
Lower DHA levels also impair synthesis of serotonin, increasing the risk of depression as well as cognitive decline in the elderly.32 In the Framingham Heart Study, the top quartile of blood DHA level was associated with a 47 percent reduction in the risk of developing dementia.33 It is important to assure adequate amounts of DHA with a diet
ary source of DHA, such as fish, or a supplement for those who do not consume fish regularly.
The bottom line is this: When you fry a vegetable in oil, it doesn’t count as a vegetable anymore; it’s junk food.
The consumption of unhealthy oils that are high in omega-6 fats leads to inflammation, obesity, and heart disease, yet the average American consumes more than 400 calories a day from (fiberless) oil—up 67 percent since the 1950s.34 And people who eat fast foods consume considerably more oil. We also know that clinical intervention trials and animal studies indicate that increasing dietary intake of long-chain omega-3 fatty acids as well as reducing the intake of omega-6 fatty acids reduces aggressive and violent behaviors. A large study of eight hundred active military personnel who committed suicide also found that the likelihood of suicide was 62 percent higher in those with low levels of DHA.35
Since 1909, per capita consumption of soybean oil has increased a thousandfold.36 The homicide rate in the United States and the United Kingdom tripled between 1961 and 2000, while the percentage consumption of omega-6 oil grew by a similar amount during this period. The NIH compared homicide rates against oil consumption between 1961 and 2000 in Argentina, Australia, Canada, the United Kingdom, and the United States.37 They collected data for twelve types of oils, including soybean, corn, and canola oils, which are the most popular. A direct correlation was found between the level of oil consumption and the rate of homicide in each population.
Clearly, this link between high consumption of omega-6 oil and violence, suicide, and murder is something that should not be quickly dismissed by claiming that association does not mean causation. The evidence continues to grow showing that chronic exposure to bad food influences bad behaviors. Food plays a huge role in how we think and act, affecting brain fog, depression, mood swings, anxiety, aggression, and even the propensity for violence. There is also much evidence today demonstrating that high consumption of omega-6 oils (and sweeteners) works synergistically to damage the body and the brain.38 Think of French fries or doughnuts, for example, which are just high-glycemic carbohydrates fried in oil. That’s suicide on a plate. Such foods can generate inflammation, accelerate aging, create serious autoimmune diseases such as Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis,39 and have dramatic damaging effects on brain function.
DEFICIENCIES OF EPA AND DHA ARE ASSOCIATED WITH
Lower intelligence
Poor school performance40
Aggression and hostility41
Depression and suicide42
Memory loss and cognitive decline43
Brain shrinkage and dementia44
Too many Americans damage their brains when they are young by eating Frankenfoods, and then as they get older they suffer from chronic diseases and premature aging and finally risk losing their minds almost completely through dementia. The constellation of factors present in and missing from the modern fast food diet, as well as deficiencies in omega-3 fatty acids, accelerates brain deterioration.
The number of new cases of Alzheimer’s disease, which is directly linked to an unhealthy diet, is expected to triple between 2010 and 2050.45 The number of people living with dementia worldwide is currently estimated at 47.5 million and is projected to increase to 75.6 million by 2030. In the United States, compared with their Caucasian counterparts, African Americans are about two times more likely and Hispanic Americans are about one and one-half times more likely to develop Alzheimer’s and other forms of dementia. African Americans and Hispanics are at much higher risk, and diet is the only factor that can account for these differences; no known genetic factors can explain the greater prevalence of Alzheimer’s and other forms of dementia in these two populations. Alzheimer’s is a disease that is often diagnosed late in life. We now know that it is also a progressive ailment that is present and can be predicted from mild cognitive and emotional problems decades before diagnosis.
Omega-3 and omega-6 are both fatty acids; they are very similar, but their effects on the brain are very different. The cell membranes in the brain are made out of DHA. When we don’t have adequate reserves, the body will substitute an omega-6 molecule called docosapentaenoic acid (DPA), which is similar to DHA.46 Even though DHA and DPA are interchangeable, they are not identical. DHA is more flexible than DPA. This property is called membrane fluidity and is very important for proper cell function. In the brain, these membranes surround the neuron and allow more neurochemical signals to get passed back and forth. DHA-impregnated membranes allow more nutrients to get into cells and more toxins to get out. High levels in the brain of n-6 DPA are associated with poorer cognitive function.47
Humans are extremely adaptable. Ideally, we should consume healthy amounts of both short-chain omega-3 ALA and the longer chain DHA, as well as EPA through our diet or high-quality supplements. But when this is not possible, our genes are intelligent enough to make use of omega-6 fatty acids. This comes at a price, however, because omega-6 triggers inflammation and alters the composition of our brains in unfavorable ways.
WHAT YOU EAT AFFECTS YOUR PERSONALITY, AND YOUR PERSONALITY AFFECTS WHAT YOU EAT
Studies confirm that children who consume a superior diet perform better academically compared with those who are nutrient deficient.48 Well-fed children are also less hyperactive, less moody, and better behaved.49 Furthermore, recent research has documented that increasing consumption of vegetables and fruits can significantly elevate psychological well-being and people’s “happiness levels.”50 This study is one of the first major scientific attempts to explore psychological well-being beyond the traditional findings that more fruits and vegetables can reduce the risks of cancer and heart attacks. Researchers followed more than twelve thousand randomly selected individuals for more than two years. Happiness benefits were detected for each extra portion of fruit and vegetables consumed, up to eight portions a day. They found that people who changed from consuming almost no fruits and vegetables to consuming eight portions a day experienced an increase in life satisfaction that was equivalent to moving from unemployment and poverty to employment and financial adequacy. This improvement in a sense of well-being occurred within twenty-four months.
This study ran in conjunction with the Australian Go for 2&5 campaign, which promoted the consumption of two portions of fruit and five portions of vegetables per day. Commenting on the findings, Dr. Redzo Mujcic, one of the researchers from the University of Queensland, said: “Perhaps our results will be more effective than traditional messages in convincing people to have a healthy diet. There is psychological payoff now from fruits and vegetables—not just a lower health risk decades later.”51
WE AREN’T RATS, BUT WE BEHAVE LIKE THEM
Scientists at the Scripps Research Institute in Florida found that feeding rats junk food progressively degraded their brains’ reward systems.52 They tested two groups of rats: One was fed a diet of high-fat, high-calorie foods, and the other received a normal diet. The rats fed the unhealthy diet quickly became obese, less active, and developed a preference for unhealthy foods. But more significantly, the structure of their brains changed. The number of dopamine neuroreceptors in the brains of the junk food rats plummeted, and some areas of the brain shrank, decreasing learning capacity.53 At mealtimes, mild electric shocks were administered to all rats. The rats fed the normal diet immediately stopped eating, but the rats eating junk food continued eating even while they were being shocked. They had become desensitized and compulsive. This relates to how fast food induces compulsive eating, and the diminished brain function, in turn, affects how poor eaters behave socially.
Like the rats fed fast food, too many Americans have diminished dopamine function as a result of overconsumption of junk food. They also experience diminished chemosensory perception, which means that they are less able to smell and taste. This is especially evident in the elderly, who have a reduced ability to enjoy the subtle flavors of real foods, so they become more reliant on using salt and sugar to boost flavors.54 Alzheimer’s patients
show even greater olfactory deficits than other elderly, an effect related to the degree of dementia. Our inability to enjoy healthy foods is linked to alterations in the brain that ultimately become permanent as we progress toward dementia. It is a direct consequence of an impaired metabolism caused by an unhealthy diet. It is ironic that eating unhealthy foods damages us in a way that makes healthy eating unappealing. The good news is that we can recover, but that recovery requires conscious effort because of the way in which unhealthy diets alter our personalities and taste preferences.
After chronic overstimulation with concentrated and rapidly absorbed calories, we develop cravings. Eventually, after habitually eating fast food, the enjoyment that we once had from eating these foods weakens and instead we experience cravings—that intense desire that is so difficult to satisfy. Interestingly, this loss of self-control in eating and the loss of self-control that impulsively violent people experience have similar causes. Unhealthy diets simultaneously impair the function of dopamine, serotonin, and other neurotransmitters in the brain, and these changes correlate with anger and violence in both animal studies and human studies.55 People who consume an unhealthy fast food diet have less self-control, have a reduced ability to control food intake, and also are more hostile and easily angered. Unnatural Frankenfoods destroy us from the inside out and affect how we treat each other. In contrast, a healthy diet with adequate phytochemicals, nutritional diversity, and omega-3 fatty acids elevates serotonin levels and normalizes receptor sensitivity, which can improve mood and eliminate the need to eat for emotional reasons.56
SCIENTIFIC STUDIES RELATE INTELLIGENCE TO NUTRITIONAL ADEQUACY
Human intelligence is higher, on average, in some places than in others around the world. Scientists analyzed IQ scores from 113 countries worldwide and found lower scores in countries with higher exposure to parasites and infectious disease, especially when such diseases impact nutrition during vulnerable periods of brain growth and development. Parasites often create micronutrient deficiencies in the host. The health and nutritional status of a region is the single largest determinant of the intelligence of its population; and aside from widespread infection and parasites, the single largest determinant of regional health is diet. Poor diet is a problem we can solve if we put our minds to it. Populations that have reduced infectious parasites and have instituted better sanitation and better nutrition have already seen higher scores on IQ tests in subsequent generations.57
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