What happens on a high omega-6 diet
A while back I wrote a review of Queen of Fats: Why Omega-3s Were Removed from the Western Diet and What We Can Do about Them. Susan Allport's book goes into the history of how omega-3s were discovered and what they'll mean for us in the future.
A controversial topic of the book is how omega-6 (king) and omega-3 (queen) compete for space in eicosanoid pathways. The omega-6s, the king, are the greater competitor and more inflammatory, while the omega-3, the queen, are a lesser competitor and less inflammatory.
She goes on about this relationship between omega-6 and omega-3 and gives examples from nature of how both the oils are found and used -- omega-3s in leaves (leaf fats), omega-6s in seeds (seed fats); omega-3s eaten more often in summer months, omega-6s in winter months by animals. The omega-6s are thought to bring on extra fat for warmth, for storage, for hibernation.
It's all pretty interesting stuff. And again, as I said, a bit controversial.
Now, in a new article, Susan gives a single-person account -- herself -- of results one gets from eating a high omega-6 diet for one month. I mean, we're not talking about a randomized, clinical trial. But nevertheless, her results are particularly interesting:
- reduced RMR
- omega-3 drop in blood (10% to 6%)
- omega-6 rise from 21% to 29%
- brachial artery dilation drop by 22%
- gain of 5 pounds
You can read more about her small experiment here. In the meantime, I'm popping my fish oil pills.
A controversial topic of the book is how omega-6 (king) and omega-3 (queen) compete for space in eicosanoid pathways. The omega-6s, the king, are the greater competitor and more inflammatory, while the omega-3, the queen, are a lesser competitor and less inflammatory.
She goes on about this relationship between omega-6 and omega-3 and gives examples from nature of how both the oils are found and used -- omega-3s in leaves (leaf fats), omega-6s in seeds (seed fats); omega-3s eaten more often in summer months, omega-6s in winter months by animals. The omega-6s are thought to bring on extra fat for warmth, for storage, for hibernation.
It's all pretty interesting stuff. And again, as I said, a bit controversial.
Now, in a new article, Susan gives a single-person account -- herself -- of results one gets from eating a high omega-6 diet for one month. I mean, we're not talking about a randomized, clinical trial. But nevertheless, her results are particularly interesting:
- reduced RMR
- omega-3 drop in blood (10% to 6%)
- omega-6 rise from 21% to 29%
- brachial artery dilation drop by 22%
- gain of 5 pounds
You can read more about her small experiment here. In the meantime, I'm popping my fish oil pills.
