Omega 6 and other fatty questions.

davyjose

Guys, I'm looking for a way to reduce Omega 6 fatty acids in my diet, while maintaining a low carb diet. To be honest, I'm a little lost on Omega 6 and why it's considered bad for us. I figured Saturated fats were bad, and Omega's were good. (I now know that's not really the case)
I do realise that the ratio of Omega 6's to omega 3's in most people's diets are bad, but I don't know why, nor do i know how a western diet causes this imbalance.

Assuming most of my diet will be made up of non-starchy veg, nuts, meat eggs, and dairy -- cheese, butter, cream -- (emphasis on "assuming", as I'm very much finding my feet on the low carb dieting), how can I ensure a decent balance of fats?

Transform

this will help -
http://thetransformationcatalyst.wordpress.com/2010/01/21/fats-that-heal-fats-that-kill/

EileenG

Short answer, cut back on the grains and you'll take out a lot of Omega 6 from your diet. Omega 6 itself is fine, it's just that on a carb-based diet, we tend to eat far too much of it compared to the amount of Omega 3.

Just cutting out the refined carbs will go a long way to fixing this problem.

ApeXaviour

davyjose wrote: »

Guys, I'm looking for a way to reduce Omega 6 fatty acids in my diet, while maintaining a low carb diet. To be honest, I'm a little lost on Omega 6 and why it's considered bad for us. I figured Saturated fats were bad, and Omega's were good. (I now know that's not really the case)
I do realise that the ratio of Omega 6's to omega 3's in most people's diets are bad

Heya Omega 6 aren't bad, linoleic acid is an w-6 polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA) and without it you can't live. The problem, as transform's link tells you, is that most people get too much compared to w-3

Eileen also speaks sagely.

Another good way to reduce your omega-6 is to not use cheap vegetable or seed oils and instead fry in lard, coconut oil or olive oil. You'll get all you need from nuts and seeds and vegetables etc. without overloading.

Transform

ApeXaviour wrote: »

Heya Omega 6 aren't bad, linoleic acid is an w-6 polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA) and without it you can't live. The problem, as transform's link tells you, is that most people get too much compared to w-3

Eileen also speaks sagely.

Another good way to reduce your omega-6 is to not use cheap vegetable or seed oils and instead fry in lard, coconut oil or olive oil. You'll get all you need from nuts and seeds and vegetables etc. without overloading.

agreed

davyjose

Lard? Awesome, lol . I suppose in essence everything comes down to balance (i'm sure if somehow there was a diet with a 10:1 ratio of omega 3 to 6, that would be just as bad)?
Great link transform. I'll give it a read tomorrow.

I suppose, essentially, my concern is that the low carb diet was not about counting or meticulously measuring cals and portions, but you guys pretty much gave me the advice I sought -- particurly your advice, Eileen, about grain(No skin off my nose -- in past diets my cravings have always been meaty, juicy, greasy ones. Or as we'd say at the buffet:“carbs are just filler” ).

Offhand, what kind of ratio do you guys keep between 3's, 6's and sat fats?

EileenG

I have no idea! I tend to eat whatever is on sale and in season, so it varies a lot.

I do try to stick to fresh whole food, and eat a reasonable amount of fish, so I reckon it all balances out.

El_Dangeroso

Stephan Guyenet of Whole Health Source has done an excellent series of posts on this:

Here is an overview of 3/6 and heart disease. Part I and Part II and a simplified summary for the lay person.

The bottom line being:

There are two ways to stay in balance: reduce omega-6, and increase omega-3. In my opinion, the former is more important than the latter, but only if you can reduce omega-6 to below 4% of calories. If you're above 4%, the only way to reduce your risk is to outcompete the omega-6 with additional omega-3. Keeping omega-6 below 4% and ensuring a modest but regular intake of omega-3, such as from wild-caught fish, will probably substantially reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease and other chronic illnesses.

I do try to keep n-6 below 4% of calories, which isn't as easy as you think.

Quite easy to go over that if you eat seeds and nuts in abundance. Lowest n-6 nuts are macadamias. Also, if chicken fat is providing a significant portion of your fat calories, then it's easy enough to go over the 4% too. So don't go drinking chicken grease.

Here's a list of omega 3 and 6 content of some common foods:

http://weightoftheevidence.blogspot.com/2006/10/omega-3-and-omega-6-food-sources.html

I think the best hedge is to keep your diet varied, along with avoiding veg oil and processed food and moderating nut and seed intake.

Transform

EileenG wrote: »

I have no idea! I tend to eat whatever is on sale and in season, so it varies a lot.

I do try to stick to fresh whole food, and eat a reasonable amount of fish, so I reckon it all balances out.

agreed - i never measure anything when it comes to food. My training is a total different story