Weight Loss with Flaxseed Oil - The Non-Fat Fat By Jade Beutler, R.R.T., R.C.P. So you want to lose weight, yet you've tried every diet in the book. You've resigned yourself to the fact that your body is in a perpetual state of self sabotage. I mean, why else would you weigh more now than when you began to diet in the first place? The fact is, your body is not in a state of self sabotage, but self preservation. You see, when you begin to restrict calories your body is programed to believe that you are entering a period of famine. This instinct is ingrained in our genes dating back to distant times when our food supply wasn't as easy to catch as the corner grocery store. Metabolism, the burning of calories to create energy, is slowed with caloric restriction. When coming out of a famine, or in modern day terms, a diet - the body begins to hoard calories as body fat in anticipation of the next famine (diet). The result? You get fatter and fatter with each attempt. It is true, diets don't work.  Worse, the fad
toward no-fat, low-fat
foods has
resulted in
Americans
becoming fatter
and fatter yet.
This according to a
Barron's July 1,
1998 article
entitled Fat and
Getting Fatter,
"Despite a glut of diet foods and health clubs,
Americans are growing plumper." The
elimination of fat from foods creates the
absolute opposite reaction in the body than
what is implied or perceived. When we eat no-fat,
low-fat foods we don't expect for these
foods to create weight gain, but that's exactly
what they do. The majority of no-fat, low-fat
foods are heavily refined, caloricly dense
carbohydrates. These foods, if not used in the
production of energy,
such as vigorous
activity or
exercise, will
be converted to
unsightly
adipose tissue.
Flax Fat Facts An unlikely hero in the battle of the bulge is in fact classified as a fat. Flaxseed oil is quickly gaining acclaim as a sensible approach along with a fiber-rich, whole foods diet to weight loss and vibrant optimal health. Two of the nations top nutritionists are particularly outspoken proponents of the value of flaxseed oil. One espouses flaxseed oil as an "essential element of a healthy diet," the other, "any dietary or weight loss program undertaken without the addition of the essential nutrients in flaxseed oil is destined to fail."  Flaxseed Oil - The Non-Fat Fat
What about the fat phobic in the crowd? After all, flaxseed oil is a form of fat. While technically classified as a fat, flaxseed oil is actually an anti-fat. In fact, it is the exact antitheses to the much maligned saturated fat. While saturated fat contributes to obesity, cardiovascular disease, stroke and other degenerative diseases, flaxseed oil prevents and may even reverse these afflictions. For all intents and purposes we can think of flaxseed oil as the non-fat fat. Instead of trying to fool the body such as with caloric restriction or no-fat, low-fat foods, flaxseed works with the metabolic and physiologic processes of the body resulting in natural weight loss and maintenance. The fatty acids in flaxseed oil have been identified as essential nutrients. This is to say that the body cannot convert other food sources into the essential fatty acids in flaxseed oil. As a result, your body actually craves and looks for these essential nutrients in the foods you eat. If they are not there, your body detects a nutritional deficiency and you continue to crave fatty foods and sweets. Currently, we are getting less than 0.1% of the primary fatty acid in flaxseed oil in our diet. Adding flaxseed oil to foods, or taken with a meal, creates a feeling of satiation (feeling of fullness and satisfaction following a meal). The essential fats in flaxseed oil cause the stomach to retain food for a longer period of time as compared to no-fat or low-fat foods. The addition of flax oil to food also results in a gradual release of this combination into the small intestine. The physiological effect is a slow, sustained rise in blood sugar, then a prolonged plateau of blood sugar. Ultimately, the blood sugar undergoes a slow and gradual drop. You will experience a corresponding feeling of prolonged energy, stamina and satisfaction with no immediate hunger pangs following the meal. The net result is that you feel fuller, longer, and actually eat fewer calories in the long run than if you would have chosen a no-fat, low-fat diet. Furthermore, flaxseed oil is converted to compounds that stoke the metabolic processes in our cells. Much like a furnace, once stoked, the cells generate more heat and burn more fuel, in this case, calories. The essential nutrients in flaxseed oil also increase oxygen consumption at the cellular level resulting in increased energy and stamina, and feeling of well-being.  General Recommendations
The American population has been found to be deficient in a key essential nutrient critical to ideal health and optimal weight. The most common food source of these essential nutrients is fresh flaxseed oil. Most Americans would benefit from consuming 1-2 tablespoons a day of flaxseed oil. The ideal method of taking flaxseed oil for purposes of weight loss or maintenance is in divided doses taken with each meal. Consumers should only consider Fresh ExPressedTM flaxseed oil products with expiration date codes no longer than 4-months, to ensure product freshness and nutritional potency. What a better way than to conclude with a direct quote from a leading nutritionist, "The right kind and the right amount of fat will allow you to lose weight effortlessly and painlessly without becoming preoccupied with dieting... essential fat is the healthiest and easiest way to attain and maintain your normal weight."  
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