Essential Fatty Acids

Essential Fatty Acids

There are a number of omega fatty acids but only omega-3 and omega-6 are considered essential fatty acids. These essential fatty acids are acids that need to be ingested by humans as we cannot synthesize them but we require them for good health.

Omega-3 Fatty Acid

Omega-3s come mainly from fish and plant oils and have many health benefits. Circulatory problems, such as varicose veins, appear to benefit from the consumption of omega-3 fatty acids.

Research has also shown that a healthy consumption of omega-3s will help against conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis and cardiac arrhythmias.

Some research, which is in its early stages, suggests that omega-3s may even help fight depression and anxiety. However, this theory is in the early stages and should not be taken as fact just yet.

On another note, some studies seem to indicate that there is a good chance that omega-3 fatty acids have anti-cancer affects.

Omega-6 Fatty Acid

The main sources of omega-6 fatty acids come from palm, soybean, rapeseed and sunflower oils, which between them produce the majority of omega-6 in terms of human consumption.

It is important to note that excessive consumption of omega-6s can produce negative impacts on health and has been associated with arthritis, inflammation and even cancer. The amount consumer would have to be a significant amount, but it is something that we should be wary of.

What are the differences of the omegas?

Each of the omega fats are essential to the body, however we cannot produce it naturally so we must consume it someway. However, the different omegas are different in structure and the roles in our body.

The differences are actually very complicated, but what it appears to come down to is that omega-3s have anti-inflammatory benefits as well as helping fight heart disease and omega-6s support that skin and help to lower the cholesterol of the blood.

Sources of Essential Fatty Acids

As mentioned previously the human body must ingest essential fatty acids and fortunately there are many food sources available in order for us to get a healthy amount into our body. Fish, leafy vegetables, walnuts, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds and many oils are good sources of omegas and there are of course many supplements available that provide essential fatty acids.

My Sport Relief Run

My Sport Relief Run

Sport Relief Mile

Sport Relief is a charity event held in the United Kingdom. It is associated with Comic relief and is in partnership with BBC Sport and the aim is to bring the two worlds of sport and entertainment together in the name of charity. Participants can take part in 1, 3 or 6 miles where they can walk or run. The official sponsor of the Sport Relief Mile is Sainsbury. Money raised from the event goes to help underprivileged people in the United Kingdom and overseas.

My Goals

I decided to take up the run as a new challenge for myself, as I am not a runner, but also to do something for charity. So my two goals were to complete a 6 mile run and raise some money for charity. I asked my girlfriend if she wanted to run with me and she agreed so I had my running/training partner and all was well.

Training

 

We researched into running for advice on training and nutrition to find out what was needed for running. We ended up going out running three to four times a week in the build up to the run and we increased the distance each time we trained. We also included other exercises, such as planks, to build up other muscles.

Fundraising

Throughout the build up we harassed friends and family for sponsor money. I raised £83 and my girlfriend raised £200. Not bad going.

The Run

On the 25^th of March at 10:00am my run began. The atmosphere was great and there were a lot of people there. We managed to run the majority of the 6miles, only walking a small amount, and managed to complete the distance in just over one hour. We had a lot of fun and hopefully raised some good money for charity. It is expected that there were around 4,000 people that took part, which is fantastic.

Finished!

What Are Calories?

What are calories?

I think that a major problem is that people simply do not know what a calorie is. I hear and see people looking to lose weight and they purchase ‘low fat’ foods, and foods with reduced sugar. I am someone who does not advocate low fat foods because we need fat for our body so it is important to know what calories are and from there we can alter our diet to get the best from our bodies.

So what are calories?

Calories are, essentially, a measurement of energy. The technical definition of a calorie is how much energy it takes to change the temperature of one gram of water by 1 degree Celsius. As a matter of fact, when talking about food energy, a calorie is actually 1000 times more than 1! On food labels we will find ‘kcal’ and this literally means 1000 calories. However, 1000 calories (1 kcal) is generally referred to as 1 calorie.

So calories are needed for us to complete our daily lives. We each have different calorie requirements and this number varies depending on what we do for our job, our hobbies and our social lives. For the average adult, calorie intake is from 1500 to 3000 on a daily basis. It is important that we know how many calories we need to consume and that we do not go over this amount, or indeed below this amount, as we will gain or lose weight and body fat accordingly. However, our body can only use so many calories at one time, so whatever energy is not needed is stored as fat. This means that eating too many calories is why people gain fat.

A calorie break-down

Overall calorie consumption is the key to weight control but here is a break down of the amount of calories in protein, carbohydrates and fats, per 1 gram of each:

• Protein – 4 calories
• Carbohydrates – 4 calories
• Fats – 9 calories 

So calories are units of energy and we depend on them to live! Different nutrients have different amounts of calories in them, but it is overall calorie intake that we need to be aware of in order to control our weight and body fat storage.