Omega-6 Fatty Acids – The Other Important Fat
Omega-6 Fatty Acids – The Other Important Fat
I am still working to educate people that fats are not all bad when it comes to fat. So many people still believe that we should avoid fat – think we are still in the 80s and 90s when it turns out the messaging then wasn’t quite right.
Ironically, on the flip side of things, some people think we should eat a very high amount of fat – which isn’t necessarily correct either. We still need to find balance.
In the science of nutrition, we have the term essential, which refers to something the human body needs AND cannot make on its own. Or make enough of it on its own. For example, vitamin K is an essential vitamin. We can make SOME vitamin K on our own, but not enough, so we still need to consume it.
Fat is an essential nutrient – we do need it in the diet. And there are two more specific kinds that we need to include regularly: omega-3 fatty acids and omega-6 fatty acids.
Many people know omega-3 fatty acids though they may not know the details. However, I find that people either haven’t even heard of omega-6 fats or think we need to avoid them.
Omega-6 fatty acids are essential fat since we need to get them from the diet. But why don’t we hear much about this one?
What are Omega-6 fatty acids?
Omega-6 fatty acids are polyunsaturated fat (one of the good ones). Linoleic acid and arachidonic acids are two types of omega-6 fat. People may have heard of conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) and even take a conjugated linoleic acid supplement. These are all types of omega-6 fatty acids.
If you are wondering, the name is a bit of biochemistry and related to where the first double bond occurs – it is on the sixth carbon from the omega side of the acid.
Why do we need them?
When consumed in appropriate amounts, omega-6 fatty acids appear to help reduce the risk of heart diseases. They may also reduce the risk of some types of cancer.
BUT before getting too focused on this type of fat – let’s get some more information out of the way.
Too many of these same fats appear to increase inflammation in the body. So we want balance.
But before asking how much, I could give a number, but it isn’t necessary since we don’t need to count grams of omega-6 fats. And we don’t need to supplement them since most people are getting plenty.
Where do we find them?
Omega-6 fatty acids are prolific in the diet. It is in most vegetable oils, including safflower oil, sunflower oil, corn oil, soybean oil, and sunflower and pumpkin seeds.
If you look at the ingredients list of many foods with added fat, these oils are often there. They are also often used in foodservice – and not just fast foods.
What does this mean? Yes, omega-6 fatty acids are essential, and we need them in the diet. However, most people are getting PLENTY of omega-6 fats in their diet. So, we don’t usually need to add more. We don’t need an omega-3-6-9 supplement. We don’t need an omega-6 supplement. So, we don’t need to focus on them much – other than knowing they are there and that we need them.
So why do we talk so much about omega-3 fats? Because those are the ones, we aren’t getting enough of – in general. That’s next.
And for those who want to know. The recommendations for omega-6 fatty acids are 12 grams/day for women, 17 grams/day for men, or about 5-10% of your total calories. But, as mentioned above, you do not need to count them.
