No offense, but you have a fat head! About two-thirds of your brain is composed of fats. But not just any kind.
Your brain cells require very specialized fats – the same ones that built the brains of your prehistoric ancestors and enabled them to learn and evolve at such a fast rate. These same fats are even now being incorporated into the very structure of your brain.
Membranes – the Working Surface of Your Brain is Made from Fatty Acids
The membranes of neurons – the specialized brain cells that communicate with each other – are composed of a thin double-layer of fatty acid molecules. Fatty acids are what dietary fats are composed of. When you digest the fat in your food, it is broken down into fatty acid molecules of various lengths. Your brain then uses these for raw materials to assemble the special types of fat it incorporates into its cell membranes.
Passing through a cell's membrane into its cell's interior are oxygen, glucose (blood sugar), and the micronutrients the cell needs to function. Metabolic waste products must exit, so the cell won't be impaired by its own pollution.
Protective Myelin is 70% Fat
Myelin, the protective sheath that covers communicating neurons, is composed of 30% protein and 70% fat. One of the most common fatty acids in myelin is oleic acid, which is also the most abundant fatty acid in human milk and in our diet.
Monosaturated oleic acid is the main component of olive oil as well as the oils from almonds, pecans, macadamias, peanuts, and avocados.
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