Fructose
Fructose is a much sweeter form of simple sugar, normally found in fruits and honey, but most often as a mixture of dextrose and fructose. High fructose, largely extracted from corn, has become a modern plague, one highly responsible for the obesity epidemic. There are no health benefits to fructose or dextrose when extracted from their natural source.
Sucrose, a disaccharide chemical bonding of glucose and fructose, is almost non-existent except in sugar cane and sugar beets. Once removed from the cane or beets, sucrose is actually toxic, as it lacks all the vitamins and minerals needed to metabolize it. Although healthy individuals can handle 5 to 7 teaspoons of sucrose fairly well, if they have an otherwise healthy, balanced diet, the average American eats 42 teaspoons daily! It is a major contributor to obesity, heart disease, cancer, and diabetes, and was the first “artificial” food.
Honey consists of a mixture of fructose and dextrose, with various percentages depending on the flower source. Interestingly, it is sweeter than dextrose, fructose, or sucrose, so that total sweetness is achieved with one-third less volume than those sources. Natural raw honey has many advantages over sucrose or fructose or any of the artificial sweeteners. If obtained from local sources, it has local pollen and may help prevent seasonal allergies. It contains a small amount of protein, some B vitamins and a wide variety of essential minerals, especially potassium—similar to a fruit. Obviously, it should be eaten in moderation. Except for those who are obese or who have diabetes, using, at the most, up to 5 teaspoons of honey daily is reasonable. Incidentally, honey with cinnamon is much healthier than honey alone. Cinnamon is a great source of chromium, essential for the metabolism of carbohydrates.
Of course, the natural source of fructose or dextrose—fruits—also come with vitamins and minerals, unless they have been artificially removed.
Starches
Complex carbohydrates are found in many starchy vegetables, which are fine eaten in moderation because they also provide vitamins, minerals, and fibre. However, starches provide no health benefits.
Fats
Amino acids and carbohydrates have 4 calories per gram of consumption. Fats carry a whopping 9 calories per gram—although as with all foods, there are some that are healthier than others. Fats have long chains of hydrocarbons—carbon molecules with hydrogen molecules. Saturated fats have no open hydrogen bonds. Monounsaturated fats have one open hydrogen bond and are by far the healthiest, but interestingly, if you take in adequate omega-3s and 6s, you can make all the omega-9 fats you need. Polyunsaturated fats have multiple open hydrogen bonds, favourites of the unethical food industry, which delights in hydrogenating or “saturating” them, producing the totally unnatural and toxic trans-fats. Avoid these artificial foods.
Omega-3
Omega-3s are alpha linolenic acid (ALA), eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and are by far the most “essential” fats, as they are anti-inflammatory. They are also among the most critical essential nutrients. Deficiencies lead to low HDL cholesterol and high LDL and triglycerides, and such diverse problems as depression, high blood pressure, atherosclerosis, eclampsia, macular degeneration, schizophrenia, Alzheimer’s, and diabetes. The single best source is wild salmon. Grass-fed beef, beefalo, chicken, and turkey are also excellent. Personally, because I eat a lot of wild salmon and grass-fed meats, I take only 1,000 mg of good omega-3s daily. Because of the potential of mercury contamination in salmon, any supplement of omega-3 should be guaranteed to be mercury-free.
Health benefits (helps with or helps to prevent):
• Arthritis
• Asthma
• Attention Deficit Disorder
• Depression
• Diabetes
• Digestion
• Elevated cholesterol
• Hypertension
• Immune strength
• Macular degeneration
• Osteoporosis
• Cancer
Best sources of omega-3s:
• Wild salmon
• Grass-fed meats and fowl
• Brazil nuts
• Chia seeds
• Flaxseed oil
• Hemp seed oil
• Pumpkin seeds
• Walnut
• Green leafy veggies
• Wheat germ oil
Omega-6
Although omega-6 fats are also essential polyunsaturated fats, the average diet is overloaded with omega-6s, which are found in canola oil, corn oil, peanut oil, safflower oil, soy oil, and sunflower oil, all of which are heavily used by the food industry. I do not recommend any of those oils, as they have a high content of linoleic acid (LA), which is inflammatory. Although LA can be converted to the healthier gamma linoleic acid (GLA), that process is not guaranteed, as many other nutrients are needed for proper conversion. The only good sources of omega-6 are evening primrose oil and blackcurrant seed oil, which naturally contain higher amounts of GLA; however these can also be inflammatory in high concentrations.
The bottom line is you need a ratio of one to one omega-3s to omega-6s. In this optimal ratio, the health benefits are the same as those listed above for omega-3s.
Best sources of omega-6s:
• Raw nuts and seeds
• Evening primose and blackcurrant seed oil
Omega-9
These are the monounsaturated fats, and are not “essential” fatty acids. If you get adequate omega-3s and omega-6s, you do not need an intake of omega-9s.
Best sources of omega-9s:
• Almonds
• Avocados
• Cashews
• Chia seeds
• Hazelnuts
• Macadamia nuts
• Pecans
• Pistachios
• Olives and olive oil
Essential Amino Acids
Although most scientific sources state that there are nine essential amino acids, some also consider taurine to be “conditionally” essential. Considering the fact that 84 percent of depressed people are deficient in taurine, I consider it essential. In general, all the essential amino acids are the L-form, that is rotated on their axis to the left. A few specific examples of D-amino acids will be mentioned. Most amino acids are simple straight “chains” of carbon and nitrogen with attached hydrogen molecules. A few have perpendicular “branches” off to one side.
Histidine
This amino acid is primarily used to make histamine, which reduces sensitivity to allergens. It also enhances uptake of zinc but inhibits absorption of copper. Histidine is critical