CANNAHEALTH Rediscovering Hemp | Page 12

Hemp Hearts for Health

Hemp hearts, hemp-seeds, hemp nuts. What’s the difference between these three products? Well, nothing. Hemp seeds are actually hemp nuts, and they’re often called hemp hearts. Now that we’ve cleared that up, let’s explore some of the reasons why everyone should be consuming these tiny superfood powerhouses on a regular basis.

Enter the Omegas

Essential fatty acids are nutrients that must be sourced outside of the body as our bodies do not produce them.” Our bodies need these nutrients to function properly. Therefore, they are “essential” nutrients for growth, development, and health maintenance.

Omega-3 fatty acids are well-consumed in the western diet. Scientifically known as Alpha-linolenic acid (ALA), omega-3 fats are sourced from nuts, green leafy vegetables, some types of grass-fed animal fats, and seed oils like flax seed and hemp seed. The omega-3 fats play a key role in cell membranes and how the receptors found in these membranes functions. Omega-3 fats are responsible for initiating hormone creation that regulates blood clotting, contraction and relaxation of artery walls, and inflammation. They play an integral role in reducing inflammation in the body and in the prevention of heart disease like stroke and atherosclerosis.

Omega-6 fatty acids (linoleic acid) are also well-consumed in the western diet, but their role is a bit different than the omega-3 fatty acids. Whereas omega-3 fats are thought to be anti-inflammatory, omega-6 fats can be inflammatory. One may wonder, well why do I want to intake something that causes inflammation in my body? Explained simply, the body initiates an inflammatory response when disease or injury is present. This let’s the brain and the nervous system know that there is something wrong that needs to be healed. So this function is vital for survival. However, left unchecked for too long, inflammation in the body causes widespread damage and degradation which leads to chronic disease. In fact, many conditions are directly related to unchecked or out of control inflammation in the body. Diabetes, heart disease, dementia, depression, chronic pain are just a few of the conditions directly related to inflammation.

Unfortunately, people who consume a western diet are typically getting too much omega-6 fat from an overabundance of processed vegetable oils and products that are manufactured with these oils. Therefore, western diet consumers are prone to developing chronic inflammatory diseases. To combat this inflammation, some researchers suggest that a 1:1 ratio of Omega-3 fats to Omega-6 fats should be consumed. Western diet consumers get more of a 16:1 ratio — Omega-6 to Omega-3 — which creates a great

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