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Is Linoleic Acid and CLA a Secret Weapon for Good Health?

Written by Jeff Behar, MS, MBA

What is Linoleic Acid

Linoleic acid is a colorless to light yellow polyunsaturated fatty acid liquid. of Linoleic acid is part of the omega- Linoleic Acid and CLA 6 series. Linoleic acid is found in fish oil, meat, milk, and other dairy products. It is also a constituent of many vegetable oils, including evening primrose oil (contains about 72% linoleic acid and 9% gamolenic acid), safflower oil (contains about 75% linoleic acid as well as various saturated fatty acids) and sunflower oil.

Commercially produced linoleic acid is used in margarine, animal feeds, emulsifying agents, soaps, and drugs.

Linoleic Acid and Prostaglandins

Linoleic acid (as well as another fatty acid, gamma-linolenic, or gamolenic) produce compounds called prostaglandins. Linoleic acid is an essential fatty acid, which means that the body cannot produce it, so it must be obtained in the diet.Prostagladins are compounds that are found in every cell, are needed for the body's overall health maintenance. Prostagladins must be replenished constantly because of this need.

Linoleic acid consumption may have a negative effect on fetal growth. Pregnant women should talk to their doctors before taking linoleic acid or any other supplement.

Linoleic an Essential Fatty Acid (EFA)

Linoleic acid is an important fatty acid, especially for the growth. Linoleic Acid is especially important for pregnant women and in the development of infants. Fatty acids help to maintain the health of cell membranes, improve nutrient use, and establish and control cellular metabolism. Fatty Acids also provide the raw materials that help in the control of inflammation, body temperature, blood pressure, blood clotting, and other body functions.

Linoleic Acid Health Benefits

Improves Skin Conditions and Skin Tone. Linoleic acid helps relieve flaky, itchy, or rough skin and maintain smooth, moist skin. A tablespoon of linoleic acid-rich foods or oils may be added on a daily basis to help improve and moisturize skin. Linoleic acid may also help with skin disorders such as atopic eczema. Evening primrose oil is taken to help with skin, hair, and nail repair.

Cancer. One human study on human breast cancer cells grown in a laboratory medium showed that linoleic acid works to reduce tumor size through its effects on a gene that controls the rate of apoptosis, or cell self-destruction. A human study has shown an association between linoleic acids and a decreased risk for prostate cancer.

Multiple Sclerosis (MS). Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a disease in which demyelination, loss of myelin sheath material, occurs. (The myelin sheath is a fatty substance that surrounds and insulates the axon of some nerve cells.) This leads to disruptions in nerve impulse transmission. Linoleic acid is believed to be helpful because myelin is composed of lecithin, which is made of linoleic and other fatty acids. Many diets recommended for MS patients include supplements. Patients supplementing with linoleic acid show a smaller increase in disability and reduced severity and duration of attacks than those with no linoleic acid supplement. Evening primrose oil is beneficial because of its specialized fatty-acid content, including linoleic acid. Doses of sunflower seed oil or evening primrose oil to provide 17 grams linoleic acid per day may be beneficial.

Preeclampsia. There are studies that indicate that low doses of linoleic acid and calcium may reduce preeclampsia (the development of hypertension with increased protein in the urine or accumulation of watery fluid in cells or tissues or both, due to pregnancy) in high-risk pregnant women.

Linoleic Health Risks

Linoleic acid appears to have at least one negative effect on the human body, however. It appears to increase a person's risk of developing age-related macular degeneration (ARMD), a disease of the eye that leads to a progressive loss of vision and eventual blindness.

Conjugated Linoleic Acid (CLA)

CLA is a naturally occurring mixture of various isomers of linoleic acid with conjugated double bonds. Although CLA is present in many foods and can be synthesized from linoleic acid, it is made naturally in the stomach. CLA is found especially in ruminant animals (animals that regurgitate food and chew their food, like sheep and cows). For this reason, CLA is found primarily in dairy and beef products, as well as other foods derived from ruminant animals.

Conjugate Linoleic Acid (CLA) Supplementation

Because many people have turned to low fat protein choices like chicken and fish and have decreased meet and dairy intake, many people could benefit from CLA supplementation. Additionally, many cattle are now fed grain diets, which are lower in linoleic acid than the grass on which they used to feed, so there is less CLA in beef and dairy foods.

CLA supplements, or fats containing CLA, generally contain a mixture of CLA isomers. Plant oils, however, contain little CLA, but are a rich source of linoleic acid. While linoleic acid may be taken as a supplement to help with certain conditions, the supplement will not necessarily increase CLA levels in the body.

Potential Benefits of CLA Supplementation

Improves Body Composition. CLA has been shown to reduce body fat, improve muscle tone, improve nutrient usage, and reduce the appetite by improving the way the body extracts energy from less food. These properties are useful not only for those trying to lose weight or tone muscles, but also for people with nutrient absorption disorders and other digestive problems.

Reduces Food Allergy Risks. Animal research suggests that CLA supplementation may limit food allergy reactions.

Improves Glucose Tolerance. CLA supplementation may improve glucose tolerance.

May Improve Inflamatory Disease Responses. CLA is also used as a nutritional supplement for allergic respiratory disease, circulation, arthritis, and inflammatory problems.

Use as a Anti-Oxidant to Prevent Heart Disease. CLA is also a potent antioxidant and may help reduce plaque formation in arteries and thus help prevent heart disease.

Reduces Arthritis Pain. Evening primrose oil (contains about 72% linoleic acid and 9% gamolenic acid.) helps to reduce arthritis pain.

Reduces Depression. Evening primrose oil may help to depression symptoms.

Controls Alcohol Abuse Damage. Evening primrose oil may help to control diabetes, liver and kidney damage due to alcohol.

Reduces Premenstrual Syndrome (PMS) Symptoms. Evening primrose oil may help reduce several symptoms of premenstrual syndrome (PMS).

Anticarcinogenic. Animals studies have shown CLA to reduce several types of cancer, such as: breast, colorectal, lung, prostate, stomach, and skin cancers. Studies indicate that CLA might also slow the growth of cancer.

Cystic Fibrosis (CF). Some research suggests that infants with Cystic Fibrosis (CF) can benefit from formula with a high linoleic acid content because it optimizes nutrition, growth, and feeding efficiency.

Multiple Sclerosis (MS). See health benefits noted above for linoleic acid.

CLA Precautions. CLA appears to be safe and nontoxic at supplemental levels, however CLA may cause gastrointestinal upset in isolated cases.

Note: using evening primrose oil as a supplement for linoleic acid can cause symptoms of undiagnosed temporal lobe epilepsy and should be used with caution in patients with a history of epilepsy. People who take epileptogenic drugs (drugs which cause epilepsy), in particular phenothiazines, may have interactions with evening primrose oil, and should talk to their doctors before using a supplement. Evening primrose oil can may also cause minor gastrointestinal upset and headache as well.

For More Great Informative Articles like this one, check out: http://www.mybesthealthportal.com/.

About the Author

Jeff Behar, MS, MBA

Jeff Behar, MS, MBA is a recognized health, fitness and nutrition expert, regularly writing about hot topics in the areas of health, fitness, disease prevention, weight loss, nutrition, anti aging and alternative medicine. Jeff Behar's work also often appears in several of the major health and fitness newsletters, health and fitness magazines, and on major health, fitness, and weight loss websites.

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