Essential Fatty Acids, Lorenzo's Oil and Beyond

Nutritional Research by Patricia Kane, Ph.D., Millville, New Jersey, U.S.A.
(Explore Issue: Volume 7, Number 6)

In our struggle to direct the biochemistry of the human system we have fallen into an abyss in regard to our understanding of lipids and therapeutic manipulation. Virtually every aspect of metabolism is completely dependent upon the fats we consume yet current opinion leads one to believe that the etiology of the catastrophic illnesses of our time all have an intimate connection to the consumption of butter, eggs and meat. The entire spectrum of autoimmune disorders, endocrine imbalances, gastrointestinal disturbances, cardiovascular difficulties and central nervous system involvement are all rivoted in derangement of fatty acid metabolism. The conflict is so deep that cardiologists and oncologists have completely opposing statements in regard to lipid consumption, one stating that fats be avoided completely and the other the exclusive use of polyunsaturated fats. American and European homes abound with polyunsaturates, unfortunately they are in the form of hydrogenated or trans fatty acids that are lifeless lipids that cannot support nutriture with anything more than calories. The use of trans fats literally shuts down the fatty acid metabolism. The synthesis of prostaglandins-local hormones that control all cell to cell interactions within the body-are completely dependent upon the ingestion of high quality, unaltered fatty acids. The body requires specific fatty acids to create gastrointestinal integrity, bilipid membranes, hormones, neurohormones, prostaglandins and immune modulators all derived from fatty acids and these fats must be supplied and trans fats avoided if modulation of the faulty metabolism is to be achieved.

In our struggle to direct the immune, endocrine, cardiovascular and nervous systems we have neglected to use the very substrate that is basic to all biochemical interactions -- fatty acids. Instead we have shunned lipids, removed them from our diets, blamed them for the ills of society-obesity, cancer, heart disease, degenerative illness-when in fact they are the critical substrates to the immune (cytokines, prostaglandins), endocrine (hormones, neurohormones) neuronal (myelin) components we attempt to manipulate. The administration of hormones, for example, often fails when an individual exibits very low serum cholesterol which is the base substrate for the cascade of regulatory hormones. Thus when an individual is loaded with a hormone they are often unable to properly utilize the hormone due to a deficiency of substrate (fatty acids, coenzymes). Recently the addition of DHEA has been suggested but this often further complicates the patient's chemistry rather than corrects the hormonal imbalance because the basic raw materials are missing and the ingestion of trans fats literally blocks fatty acid metabolism and hormonal production. The very availability of fatty acids (found in unrefined, cold processed oils, coconut butter, raw nuts and seeds) is often a challenge in the United States and now across Europe as our oils are hydrogenated to prolong shelflife.

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