Eat Fat to Lose Fat?

Author: Steve Born

It sure sounds paradoxical, eating fat to help lose body fat. But that very well may be true and at this time of the year, a time when we’re trying to keep that “winter coat” to a minimum and/or kick start our weight-loss goals, it’s something definitely worth considering. Of course, you want to make sure that you’re eating the right kind of fats—meaning the healthy Omega 3 essential fatty acids (and avoiding saturated fats)—and that you’re consuming an adequate, but not too high, amount of them.

A number of animal research papers (listed below) suggest that it is the person that is deficient in Omega 3 fatty acids that may accumulate fat cells, while the person consuming sufficient amounts of Omega 3 fatty acids will not accumulate excess adipose tissue. What is an adequate daily dose? A world-recognized expert of essential fatty acids, Udo Erasmus, says that humans need only 2-9 grams per day to prevent the effects of deficiency – i.e., excess fat gains. Now, while animal research is not the same as human research in terms of time and dose, the effects may be similar.

The take-home point is that regular consumption of sufficient amounts of multi-beneficial Omega 3 fatty acids may—among their many other already-proven benefits—be a valuable ally in the battle to help prevent fat weight gain AND in helping support fat loss. Fish oils are arguably the easiest way to obtain these all-important Omega 3 fatty acids, and Hammer Nutrition sells an excellent product, the Carlson Norwegian Salmon Oil. For potential support in the “battle of the bulge,” as well as a plethora of other benefits, this is a product that you should seriously consider adding to your “take every single day” supplement arsenal.

REFERENCES:

• White, P. J., et al. Is OMEGA-3 key to unlocking inflammation in obesity? Diabetologia. 2006.
• Winnicki, M., et al. Fish-rich diet, leptin, and body mass. Circulation. 106(3):289-291, 2002.
• Takahashi, Y., et al. Dietary n-3 fatty acids affect mRNA level of brown adipose tissue uncoupling protein 1, and white adipose tissue leptin and glucose transporter 4 in the rat. British Journal of Nutrition. 84(2):175-184, 2000.
• Cha, S., H., et al. Chronic docosahexaenoic acid intake enhances expression of the gene for uncoupling protein 3 and affects pleiotropic mRNA levels in skeletal muscle of aged C57BL/6NJcl mice. Journal of Nutrition. 131(10):2636-2642, 2001.
• Flachs, P., et al. Polyunsaturated fatty acids of marine origin upregulate mitochondrial biogenesis and induce beta-oxidation in white fat. Diabetologia. 2005.
• Kim, H. K., et al. Docosahexaenoic acid inhibits adipocyte differentiation and induces apoptosis in 3T3-L1 preadipocytes. Journal of Nutrition. 136(12):2965-2969, 2006.
• Li, H. X., et al. [Effects of docosahexaenoic acid on rat adipocytes proliferation and differentiation.] Sheng Wu Gong Cheng Xue Bao. 21(5):840-843, 2005.
• Ruzickova, J., et al. Omega-3 PUFA of marine origin limit diet-induced obesity in mice by reducing cellularity of adipose tissue. Lipids. 39(12):1177-1185, 2004.