Essential Fatty Acids: The capsule vs oil debate
In 2007 when Bestow Beauty Founder, Janine Tait, decided to produce a skin-friendly fatty acid (EFA) supplement to support her client’s skin healing programmes, she had to make a choice - would she create an EFA capsule or an oil? As a dermo-nutritionist, the choice was obvious! She knew that an EFA oil supplement would be far superior to a capsule supplement for two key reasons:
1. An oil more easily provides the optimum quantity of EFAs needed for skin health.
2. An emulsified oil (i.e. oil mixed into food) is far more easily digested than a capsule, meaning more of the EFAs can be put to good use by the skin and body.
It was with this nutritional understanding that laid the foundation for Bestow Beauty Oil and Bestow Beauty Plus Oil. As the name suggests, our bodies need EFAs to properly function, only we don’t produce them; the only way to get them is through the foods we eat! If your diet is lacking in omega-3 and omega-6, a supplement like Bestow’s Beauty Oil can give your body what it needs and effect some pretty incredible skincare benefits at the same time. From improving your skin’s natural oil barrier and keeping skin plump and hydrated, these powerhouse polyunsaturated oils may also diminish inflammation and improve dry skin conditions such as psoriasis. Add to that list that they can lower your risk of heart disease, stroke and Alzheimer’s, increase immunity and may improve symptoms of depression, joint pain, and you’d be mad not to immediately increase your intake!
In a time when EFA capsules abound, let’s take a look at the capsule vs oil debate so you can better understand why Bestow oils are superior to other options on the market.
1. 1 tablespoon Bestow Beauty Oil vs 13 EFA capsules
In order to make a real difference to your skin-health and general wellbeing, you need to take a good dose of EFAs. One tablespoon of Bestow Beauty Oil provides you with 13,000mg of oil, which equates to 10,000mg of EFAs! By contrast, because capsules generally only contain 1000mg of EFA, you’d have to take 13 every day to get the same amount as one dose of Bestow Beauty Oil. Unless you really love taking those huge tablets (anyone?) Bestow Beauty Oil is a no-brainer!
2. Oil and water don’t mix
We’ve all heard the age-old adage that oil and water don’t mix, and while it’s a helpful metaphor, it’s also a scientific fact. When you put straight oil (EFAs) into a water-based system (our digestive tract) the oil and water immediately separate, resulting in less of the oil’s benefits being utilised by our bodies.
There’s a very good reason that we strongly recommend emulsifying Bestow Beauty Oils into food before consumption, and that’s because our body has special (incredible!) ways of dealing with the different types of food we ingest.
When the body detects that oil has entered the digestive system, it tells the gall bladder to produce bile, which acts like dish-washing liquid to break down the oil. After this, our bodies instruct the pancreas to secrete lipase, a digestive enzyme that breaks down fats for use by the body. Amazing, huh? But if the oil globules are too big (as is the case with capsules or oils that are taken neat) the lipase can’t do its job effectively, and the oil continues through the digestive system unutilised. Not only will you likely experience diarrhoea, but your hard-earned money will, quite literally, be going down the toilet and your body will miss out on all the skin-improving benefits EFAs provide.
Emulsify for maximum health benefits!
Mixing an EFA oil into food prepares the oil for effective digestion; the technical term for this is emulsification. The oil particles are broken down into smaller globules that can be digested and used by the body, meaning you can experience all the EFAs health promoting and skin-improving powers!
We suggest adding your Bestow Beauty Oil to your morning smoothie, porridge or yogurt, or using it as a salad dressing, but the possibilities are endless! As heat can cause the molecular structure of the oil to change, be sure to only add to chilled food or food that’s cooled down enough to eat,
