The Amazing Benefits of Healthy Fats for Wellness: Supporting Chiropractic Care for Lasting Health by Dr. Janna from LifeHouse Chiropractic in London Ontario

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August 14, 2024

The Amazing Benefits of Healthy Fats for Wellness: Supporting Chiropractic Care for Lasting Health

Benefits of Healthy Fats for Wellness

Eating the right kind of fat can lower your risk of chronic disease in London. As I watch what people put into their shopping carts, I see that most Canadians eat too much of the wrong fats and not enough of the right ones. Incorporating healthy fats for wellness supports better health and enhances chiropractic care.

Eating the right kind of fat can lower your risk of chronic disease in London. As I watch what people put into their shopping carts and into their mouths, here, in London, ON, I see that most Canadians eat too much of the wrong kind of fat and not enough of the right kind.

Obesity, high blood pressure, heart disease, depression, focus and concentration problems, aches and pains of all sorts, and other chronic illnesses are on the rise.[ 1] I think it’s time for an oil change. The good thing is changing the types of fats and oils you eat is one of the easiest healthy swaps to make and you can experience the benefits of healthy fats for wellness.

The Benefits of Healthy Fats for Wellness and Why We Need to Eat Them

Fats are very important part of a health-promoting diet, and they make food taste delicious. In 2015, the U.S. Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee released a radical recommendation to change its recommended dietary fat intake to include no upper limit on the three healthy types of fats. The recommendations took it a step further to say that it does not recommend low-fat diets or low-fat lifestyles for obesity prevention, [2] which emphasizes the benefits of healthy fats for wellness, particulary saturated, monosaturated, and polyunsaturated fats.

Types of Fats: What You Need to Know If You Want to Experience the Benefits of Healthy Fats for Wellness

There are basically four types of fats found in our diet—saturated, monounsaturated, polyunsaturated, and trans fats. Healthy fats for better health include the first three, while trans fats should be avoided due to their harmful effects. Essential fatty acids, found in foods, are especially important as they cannot be made by the body.

Trans Fats: The Fats to Avoid

Trans fats, often found in processed foods, promote inflammation and chronic disease. These bad fats have been linked to serious health issues, and it’s best to avoid them. Similarly, refined vegetable oils, like soybean and canola oil, are unhealthy and should be replaced with healthy fats to support chiropractic care and wellness.

Trans fats are commonly found in processed foods because they extend the shelf life of oils used for deep frying, they keep baked goods and frosting from drying out, and they add a creamy texture to coffee creamers and margarines. Avoid trans fats in processed foods and margarines; eating these will only promote inflammation and chronic disease.

Vegetable oils are found in nearly every packaged food and salad dressing. They include soybean oil, corn oil, cottonseed oil, canola oil and others labeled as vegetable oil.

Vegetables are healthy, so one might assume that vegetable oil is healthy, too. Sadly, their oils become unhealthy when then are unnaturally extracted, they have an unhealthy balance of Omega-6 to Omega-3 ratio, and they become rancid or decompose easily when exposed to air, heat and light, causing them to oxidize and form free radicals.

This chemical breakdown destroys the nutrients your body needs and creates a compound that is actually hazardous to your health. [4, 5]

Canola oil needs special mention. According to the Canola Council, up to 80 percent of the canola grown in Canada has been genetically modified to make it resistant to pesticides. It is heavily sprayed with pesticides, and it is highly processed with harsh chemicals. [6] For these reasons, alone, Canola falls into the ‘bad fats’ category.

Saturated Fats: Smart Fats for Optimal Health

Saturated fats are highly stable and beneficial for health and do not normally go rancid, even when heated during cooking. Examples include grass-fed butter and coconut oil. Monounsaturated fats, found in olive oil and avocados, offer heart health benefits and can reduce inflammation. The benefits of healthy fats for wellness also supports your chiropractic care for long-term wellness.[7]

Examples of healthy saturated fats include organic, grass-fed cream and butter, grass-fed beef and palm oil.

Extra Virgin Coconut oil is a saturated fat and has been shown to have the following health benefits: boosts metabolism, is a good fuel source, has anti-microbial properties and helps fight infections, appears to be beneficial for cognitive function and appears to be good for your cardiovascular health. [8]

Monosaturated Fats are Smart Fats

Monounsaturated fats (MUFAs) are fats that are liquid at room temperature and solidify when refrigerated. [9] MUFAs are found in foods like olive oil, almonds, cashews, chia seeds, ground flaxseeds, hemp seeds, natto (fermented soy), dark chocolate, eggs, red meat and avocados.

Many of the benefits of MUFAs are similar to the benefits of chiropractic care, in that they, keep your heart healthy [10], protect against metabolic syndrome [10], improve insulin dysfunction [11], help in weight management, improve mood [12], help strengthen bones [13], help brain cells communicate, which may boost cognition, learning and memory [14], may reduce risk of some cancers [15, 16, 17] and have anti-inflammatory properties [18]. Since inflammation is at the root of most diseases, including MUFAs as part of your diet will contribute to improved overall health and will complement your chiropractic care.

Be Careful When Eating Polyunsaturated Fats

Polyunsaturated fats (PUFAs) are fats that are typically liquid at room temperature but start to turn solid when chilled. Like MUFAs, PUFAs can have a beneficial effect on your heart when eaten in moderation. PUFAs contain two separate types of fatty acids: omega-3s and omega-6s, which should be combined in equal amounts. Consuming too much omega-6 and not enough omega-3 is associated with its own list of problems including increased cancer risk and heart disease, immune system dysfunction, damage to the liver, reproductive organs and lungs, digestive disorders, depressed learning ability, impaired growth and weight gain [19,20].

One reason the polyunsaturates can cause so many health issues, is that they tend to become oxidized or rancid when exposed to heat, oxygen or moisture.

Rancid oils carry free radicals that are extremely reactive on a chemical level, and may attack cell membranes and red blood cells and cause damage in DNA/RNA strands, thus triggering mutations in tissue, blood vessels and skin.

Free radical damage to the skin causes wrinkles and premature aging; free radical damage to the tissues and organs sets the stage for tumors; free radical damage in the blood vessels initiates the buildup of plaque. New evidence links exposure to free radicals with premature aging, with autoimmune diseases such as arthritis and with Parkinson’s disease, Lou Gehrig’s disease, Alzheimer’s and cataracts.

Modern agricultural and industrial practices have reduced the amount of omega-3 fatty acids in commercially available vegetables, eggs, fish and meat. For example, organic eggs from hens allowed to feed on insects and green plants can contain omega-6 and omega-3 fatty acids in the beneficial ratio of approximately one-to-one; but commercial supermarket eggs can contain as much as nineteen times more omega-6 than omega-3!

The key to eating polyunsaturated fats, is too eat them while attempting to eat enough oils/fats with Omega-3s and not too much of the Omega-6s. [20]

Healthy Cooking Oils to Use

I recommend cutting out all refined oils except extra-virgin olive oil. (Avoid vegetable oils, canola oil, margarine, trans fats in processed foods.)

When cooking, I recommend using extra-virgin coconut oil or grass-fed butter for most baking and medium-high heat sautéing, avocado oil (which can be used at higher temperatures because these are highly stable oils), and ghee (clarified butter). Ghee has a higher smoking point at 400˚ to 500˚F and provides the same nutrients in grass-fed butter like cancer-fighting conjugated linoleic acid (CLA). Ghee and butter are also high in vitamins D and A, omega-3 fats, and butyric acid, which can boost immunity and help inflammation, as well as protect against colon cancer. By choosing these fats, you will experience the benefits of healthy fats for wellness.

In many of the recipes on our website, you’ll notice that we recommend healthy fats in the ingredient list, like in our sweet & spicy nuts and homemade chocolates.

For low-heat cooking or using raw, as in salad dressings, olive oil is best, while avocado oil, macadamia oil, and walnut oil are also wonderful.
Whatever oil/fat you choose, always go for organic, unrefined, cold-pressed or expeller pressed oils.

Storage and shelf life are important to consider when using oils. Store oils in dark bottles and keep in a cool, dark place away from light and heat. Don’t store oils on kitchen counters or next to the stove. Always close the lid tightly and immediately store oils after using them because oxygen contributes to rancidity. Because oils can go bad in a matter of months, I suggest purchasing only the amount you will actually use within two months [21].

Best Sources of Healthy Fats

For best results, incorporate healthy fats like extra virgin olive oil, olives, extra virgin coconut oil, coconut products, avocado oil, avocadoes, grass-fed butter and dairy products, grass-fed beef, organic fowl, wild salmon, raw nuts (cashews, almonds, macadamia, walnuts) and seeds (chia, hemp, ground flax), and free-range organic eggs. The benefits of healthy fats for wellness include fueling your body, improving nutrient absorption, reducing inflammation, and work synergistically with chiropractic care to enhance your body’s natural healing abilities.

Nutrition and Chiropractic Care in London Ontario

Nutrition and chiropractic care in London Ontario go hand in hand. Regular chiropractic care optimizes your body’s ability to digest and absorb nutrients, and consuming healthy fats for wellness further supports this process. A combination of chiropractic care and healthy fats is key to achieving lasting health and vitality.

Our choice of fats is important. Most people need more, not less fat in their diets, especially infants, children and seniors. The fats we eat must be chosen with care to optimize health. In general, swap out cheap vegetable oils for smart fats. You’ll look better, feel better and reduce the risk of chronic disease.

References…

The Right Fats Can Keep You Lean (Infographic)

https://health.gov/dietaryguidelines/2015-scientific-report/pdfs/scientific-report-of-the-2015-dietary-guidelines-advisory-committee.pdf

http://www.ctvnews.ca/health/as-u-s-cuts-trans-fats-still-no-ban-in-canada-1.2426524

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2166702/

http://bmcmedicine.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/1741-7015-10-50

http://wellnessmama.com/35804/canola-oil-healthy/

http://www.health.harvard.edu/staying-healthy/the-truth-about-fats-bad-and-good

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21308420

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18301083

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21298116

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27262536