This is a DOC file. Omegas Made Easy: a script for a graphic version of The Queen of Fats (84.5KB)
"The Queens of Fats is a fascinating nutritional detective story delivering a big surprise: how one of the most important changes to the diet wrought by industrialization of food went unnoticed. But if Allport is right, the disappearance of omega-3s from the Western diet is the key to understanding why that diet is making us so sick."-- Michael Pollan

"Allport has done an excellent job in describing the events and the international collaboration involved in discovering the effects of omega-3 fatty acids." -- Nature

"A wonderful explanation of the wide world of fats that is a must read for discerning (and healthy) eaters." Dr. Mehmet Oz, Oprah and Friends

Which came first: the egg or the omega-3 enriched egg? Read my answer to this important question in the Vital Choice Newsletter by clicking on this text.

Eating fish is not the only way of getting your omega-3s. But is is a delicious way! Reader looking for a source of pure and sustainably-harvested seafood (including canned wild salmon and sardines and frozen halibut, salmon and shrimp) can find it at Vital Choice Seafood.

The Alaska fisheries, where Vital Choice's seafood comes from, is certified by the Marine Stewardship Council. I'm a customer and a contributor to their online newsletter.

What do brains and hummingbird flight muscles have in common?


They're both loaded with DHA, the longest and most desaturated omega-3 fatty acid to accumulate in animal tissues. The Queen of Fats, my newest book, tells the story of these fatty acids (and how they came to be all but eliminated in Western diets). It's been called the "silent spring" of nutrition books and was published by the University of California Press in September of 2006. (Photo of ruby-throated hummingbird by Russell C. Hansen)

In the past ten years or so, I've been combining my interests in science and cooking to write about food and how food shapes both behavior and health. "You are what you eat," everyone has heard, but few people realize just how far this simple phrase extends. I became captivated with the omega-3 story after learning that this same family of fats is required for both photosynthesis and thinking (the speediest activities in plants and animals, respectively). And I wrote The Queen of Fats to bridge the vast gulf between what scientists know about these fast-acting fats and what the general public knows.

I have a compelling slide presentation of The Queen of Fats, first given at the American Museum of Natural History and appropriate for groups of physicians, nutritionists, students, and parents. I am also available as a consultant to individual families, schools, and hospitals looking for ways to achieve a healthy balance between the two families of essential fats. As always, I'm available to give my other slide presentations: "Dining Out With Animals"; "The Human Omnivore"; "Parenting in the Age of Dolly"; and "Sermons in Stone."