Gut and Processed Foods (PUFAS)

Processed foods are a popular topic now a days but what are processed foods? While most people answer this with fast foods and chips, in all reality not much we eat is non-processed because technically even a washed vegetable would constitute as a processed food. BUT what I consider a processed food when I am discussing this with my clients would be anything that comes pre-packaged, bottled, boxed, or you didn’t cook yourself. Now, the last one might not always be true but since you did not cook it you have no idea what they used. Therefore, I say proceed with caution and treat it as a processed food.

One of the most important reasons why processed foods are vilified is due to their high content of PUFAS. So, what PUFAS and why does our gut care? PUFAS are one of the three types of fat. Their long name is Polyunsaturated fats. The two other types of fats are monounsaturated and saturated.

Saturated fats are considered to be a healthy fat. These fats are solid at room temperature; think butter and cheese.

Unsaturated fats are typically liquids at room temperature; think cooking oils like olive oil. Generally speaking these fats have at least one carbon bond within their molecules as opposed to a single bond in saturated fats.

Monounsaturated has only one double bond.

Polyunsaturated fat has more than one.

While most foods contain mostly fats that are very low in PUFAS there certainly are a variety that are very high. These are things like canola oil, soybean oil, corn oil, margarine, and the over used vegetable oil.

Consuming too many PUFAS is definitely not good and unfortunately, consumption of this fat has increased intensely for several decades now. The increase can be traced back to when we switched from cooking with things like lard and butter to cooking with vegetable oil.

Now that you know the basic information regarding PUFAS you might still be wondering why are they so bad? Well simply put the issue is oxidation. These fats are easily oxidized and by cooking them we make them even more rancid! When they are in our bodies they cause oxidative damage and are proponents of the development of heart disease. Another way to look at it is that they are highly inflammatory compounds. Some of the most common chronic diseases such as diabetes, obesity, autoimmune diseases, cardiovascular disease, can be traced back to inflammation.

Unfortunately, we have to get Omega 3 and Omega 6 (what PUFAS are made of) somehow because our bodies cannot produce these. The key is getting them in the correct ratios and more importantly from the right sources. Keeping in mind that most people are deficient in Omega 3 and realizing its importance in the body. Studies show the correct supply of these will promote butyrate producing bacteria which has been proven to reduce inflammation and maintain a healthy gut.

The gut is not the only place you can see evidence of PUFAS damage. Our skin shows evidence through the appearance of wrinkles, our metabolism slows down, our blood sugar increases, digestion is disrupted, detoxification systems are damaged and toxicity increases, and due to gut damage our immune system suffers and therefore, our immune response is inhibited and/or worse escalated.

The foods that have the highest PUFAS in damaging ratios are canola/grape seed/corn/soybean/generic vegetables/walnuts/cottonseed/sesame/peanut/flaxseed oils, margarine, flax & chia seeds, potato chips, granola, and MANY energy bars. But also in commercially raised beef, eggs, and poultry. And again a major reason to treat anything you did NOT cook as processed foods is the knowledge that most restaurants use animal products that are high PUFAS and also use PUFAS cooking oils.

In order to counteract some of the damage you can avoid using these at home, limit the amount of times you eat outside of the home, consume small amounts of nuts, seeds, and fatty fish, and consume only organic pasture-raised beef, eggs, poultry, and dairy products. As well as increase Vitamin E and eat more saturated fats especially when you know you will be consuming PUFAS given that they will reduce the damage.

Your gut microbiome requires real food in order to maintain a healthy balance so avoid processed foods or like Dr. Mark Hyman says avoid Franken-Foods. Avocados, asparagus, beans, rice, strawberries are all real food. Chicken nuggets, deep dish pizza chips, and apple fritter pastries are NOT real food. You will look and feel younger after giving up processed foods high in PUFAS that contain the wrong ratios of Omega 3 and Omega 6.