Certain fats are defined as 'essential' because:
- The body cannot make them;
- They are required for normal cell, tissue, gland, and organ function, for health, and for life;
- They must be provided from outside the body, through food or supplements;
- They can come only from fats (hence fat-free diets cannot supply them);
- Their absence from the diet will eventually kill;
- Deficiency results in progressive deterioration, can lead to death;
- Return of essential fatty acids to a deficient diet reverses the symptoms of deficiency and results in a return to health.
Keith Abell, RPh MI
Pharmacist - Senior Executive Marketing Director
