The Best Bird Food

Pre-Classification and Purpose of Fats

Fats fall under a wider category known as “lipids”.

Lipids

Lipids are natural organic compounds and are not water soluble; they are fat, lipid and oil soluble. Lipids include fats, phospholipids and steroids. Fats are necessary for energy, to store energy, insulate the body, and cushion and protect the organs. Phospholipids are a major component of cell membranes, they are found virtually lining every cell in the body, especially the brain, protecting each cell. They help brain cells communicate and influence how well receptors function. Steroids are cholesterol derived hormones that help regulate various physiological functions in the body.

For the purpose of our edification we will be focusing primarily on “fats” mainly in the form of “fatty acids”, the building blocks of total fats, and the function they play in the health of our companion birds.

Fats are used inside of living creatures for many things, but one of the main purposes of these necessary nutrients is for the production of energy the body will utilize in daily activities.  Therefore it is absolutely crucial that high quality fats are available to a living creature, fats that can be quickly absorbed, metabolized and exchanged into energy so that a living creature has plenty of energy in which to expend throughout each and every day. Such is the case for birds living in the wild that may need to escape quickly from any approaching predators.

But what about the fat requirements of companion birds, what are the kinds of fats our birds need? What are the best sources of food from which to derive these fats? Is it important to know how much fat our companion bird should consume each and every day?

In some ways it’s more important to discuss the classifications of fats and their molecular structure so you will have a good understanding of what constitutes a healthy fat. Once you understand what constitutes a healthy fat, it becomes much easier to choose sources of healthy fats for your companion bird to consume. And in knowing what the purpose of fats are in the diet, then we don’t have to worry as much about the total intake of fats, because we will know that the right fats, fed for the right purpose in moderation will not make our birds fat, but will supply the necessary nutrients exotic birds need to thrive.

The Two Classifications of Fats

There are two ways to classify fats, one is by saturation, the other is by the length or molecular size of the carbon chain, or how they are connected to one another.

Let’s review saturation first.

Saturation

There are mainly polyunsaturated, monounsaturated, saturated, trans-fats, and hydrogenated fats.

First there are the polyunsaturated fats (PUFAS). These are extremely healthy fats which make up the fatty acids known as “Omega 3” fats. One of the best sources for this fatty acid for our companion birds can be found in flax seed and flax seed oil, although hemp seed and hemp seed oil supplies a good amount of this fatty acid as well.

Secondly there are the monounsaturated fats (MUFAS). These are basically healthy fats which make up the fatty acids known as “Omega 6” fats; they are mostly vegetable fats and are found in abundance in almost all of the highly processed foods we consume. They are commonly derived from corn, safflower seed, peanuts and olives.  While they are mostly healthy, when eaten in overabundance they can actually add to the problem of cardiovascular problems and chronic pain by causing more inflammation unless the “GLA” (Gamma-linolenic acid) version is consumed. The “GLA” version is derived primarily from hemp seed; this is the only seed besides borage, black currant seed, and evening primrose that contains GLA.

Then there are the saturated fats. These are normally animal fats, but not always. There are healthy plants, nuts and seed that contain saturated fats.

And finally there are trans-fats and hydrogenated fats. Some trans-fats occur naturally in some foods. But most trans-fats and hydrogenated fats are industrial or synthetically produced fats for use in highly processed foods. A living creature cannot break these fats down into useable energy and they clog the arteries, never, never use these kinds of fats in your bird’s diet.

The Molecular Carbon Chain Structure of Fatty Acids

Now let’s review how fats are structured. Fats are made of chains of “fatty acids”. Fatty acids consist of chains of carbon atoms with hydrogen atoms attached.

There are short (SCFA), medium (MCFA) and long (LCFA) chain fatty acids. Most of the foods we consume are made up of the LCFAs. MCFAs also contain the medium-chain triglycerides known as MCTs. MCFAs are probably the best fatty acids to consume because a living creature recognizes fat molecules by their size and MCFAs are recognized as compatible to a living creature and therefore are metabolized more efficiently than SCFAs and LCFAs. This is actually more important to remember than the classification by “saturation” of any given fat because while a fat may be considered to be unhealthy by the “saturation” standard, it may actually be considered healthy when measured by the molecular size of the chain, that is if it is a medium chain fatty acid (MCFA).

I wish to include a short quote by Dr. Bruce Fife, ND. I believe this is one of the best explanations of how MCTs “work” in a living body:

“MCTs are processed differently. When we eat a fat containing MCTs, such as coconut oil, it travels through the stomach and into the small intestine. But since MCTs digest quickly, by the time they leave the stomach and enter the intestinal tract they are already broken down into individual fatty acids (MCFAs). Therefore, they do not need pancreatic enzymes or bile for digestion. Since they are already reduced to fatty acids as they enter the small intestine, they are immediately absorbed into the portal vein and sent straight to the liver. In the liver they are preferentially used as a source of fuel to produce energy. MCFAs bypass the lipoprotein stage in the intestinal wall and in the liver. They do not circulate in the bloodstream to the degree that other fats do. Therefore, they do not supply the fat that collects in fat cells nor do they supply the fat that collects in artery walls. MCFAs are used to produce energy, not body fat and not arterial plaque.”
(You can read Dr. Fife’s complete article at OfSpirit.com)

Categories of Fatty Acids

There are two main categories of fatty acids, both “essential and non-essential fatty acids”, in other words, “essential and conditionally essential” fatty acids that a living creature really needs to perform at its best.

The term “essential” fatty acid refers to what a living creature needs to ingest as a required food source because it cannot synthesize the nutrient without introducing it by an exogenous source, that is, a source outside of itself.

The term “non-essential” fatty acid means that a living creature does not need the substance introduced by a food source because it is synthesized by the body either naturally or by food that has previously been introduced and metabolized by the body.

The essential fatty acids are “Alpha-linolenic” (ALA) or Omega 3 and “Linolenic” (LA) or Omega 6.  Normally Omega 6 fatty acids are widely available through food sources, too available in fact. We have to work a little harder to find food sources that contain Omega 3 fatty acids.

Then there are “non-essential fatty acids” like Gamma-linolenic acid (GLA) a special Omega 6 fatty acid that is metabolized from Linoleic acid another Omega 6 fatty acid, Lauric acid (a saturated fatty acid), and Palmitoleic acid (a monounsaturated fatty acid), classified as Omega 7, found in extremely high concentration in Macadamia nuts. And finally, one Omega that isn’t talked about very much but is very important in my opinion is Omega 9, or Oleic acid. It is considered one of the “non-essential” fatty acids too, but because it has such important nutritional properties I think it is still a good idea to find a good food source and introduce it into our birds’ diet.

Omega 3

Flax Seed

The purpose of Omega 3 is heart health and good brain function. It also helps with the condition of skin, balancing emotions and providing energy to the body.  Studies have shown that Omega 3 actually lowers total cholesterol and triglycerides overall, thus reducing the risk of heart-related diseases. Studies have indicated that Omega 3 has decreased the symptoms of Rheumatoid arthritis and Lupus. And research has shown that calcium absorption improves with the intake of Omega 3, thus preventing the onset of Osteoporosis. Macular degeneration is less likely to occur when Omega 3 is consumed on a regular basis. And cancers like breast, colon and prostate cancer are less likely to occur when a diet rich in Omega 3 is consumed.

One of the best sources of Omega 3 is organic flax seed and organic flax seed oil as well as organic hemp seed and organic hemp seed oil.

Omega 6

The purpose of Omega 6 is to stimulate skin and feather growth (hair growth in humans), maintain bone health, regulate metabolism and maintain the reproductive system.

Hemp Seed

Not all Omega 6’s are equal. The “Linoleic” (LA), Omega 6’s have shown to actually cause more damage to the body when consumed in large quantities; they actually increase additional pain and inflammation as in the case of chronic pain syndromes as well as additional cardiovascular problems for heart patients. This is because the American diet consists of so many foods that are too high in Omega 6’s actually cancelling out the benefits of any of the Omega 3’s in a person’s diet.

However, if a diet that is high in the Omega 6, Gamma-linoleic acid, otherwise known as “GLA”, is consumed this is a different matter. GLA is responsible for actually contributing to lowering the total cholesterol level thus contributing to good heart health. GLA is also responsible for reducing inflammation.

The best sources of GLA Omega fatty acids for our birds’ diets are organic hemp seed and organic hemp seed oil.

Macadamia Nuts

Omega 7

It is believed that Palmitoleic acid, Omega 7, plays a significant role in fat oxidation. If so this is vitally important not only in preventing obesity, but also in the production of energy. As previously stated palmitoleic acid is abundant in macadamia nuts.

Omega 9

Oleic acid, Omega 9, is one of the “non-essential” fatty acids, meaning that living bodies synthesize it so food sources do not need to be introduced to metabolize it. However, just as a precaution it may be a good idea to introduce some food sources to make sure this fatty acid is present in the body because it is so important to have available. It’s responsible for lowering overall “lousy” LDL cholesterols and increasing the “healthy” HDL cholesterols.

Foods that are high in Oleic acid are grape seed oil, nuts and seeds. One of the best dietary sources for our companion birds is organic hemp seed and organic hemp seed oil.

How Much Fat Should We Feed To Our Birds?

After years and years of research surrounding wild and captive parrots there is still much debate as to the amount of fat content each species needs in their diet to maintain homeostasis, balanced health and vitality. Obviously a wild parrot will need a higher fat content than a captive parrot simply because of the amount of energy expended.  Having stated that fact, we must keep in mind that the quality of fat in a bird’s diet is just as important as the amount of fat in a bird’s diet, all parrots need quality fats in their diets because this is one of the prime nutrients their species thrives upon.  Even though a captive parrot may need less in their diet than a wild parrot, they still need quality fats.

We know from our research for human diets that Omega 3 fats are overall healthier than the Omega 6 fats. Therefore we want to make sure we begin by adding foodstuffs that contain these kinds of fats to the base diet for parrots. These would include foods such as leafy greens, nuts and a moderate amount of high-quality seed. We need to be careful how many grains we feed to our birds because grains are high in the Omega 6 fats, and not the good Omega 6’s like the GLA’s. While yes, all of the Omega 6’s are needed in the diet, as previously stated, a diet too high in the Omega 6’s will cancel out the good of the Omega 3’s, therefore we really need to exercise caution in feeding too many grains like corn, wheat, oats, barley, rye and millet.

When we take all of these fats into consideration, it’s no wonder that parrots need to consume a fair amount of quality fats.  They need to take in a quantity of fat for energy anyway, and they need to take in enough to cover all of the fatty acids listed here to cover all of their dietary needs.

Remember these are polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fats, the good fats. It’s when we feed high amounts of saturated fats (a small amount of saturated fats are good, like the kind found in nuts), or any amount of trans-fats or hydrogenated fats (never, never feed Trans fats or hydrogenated fats) that we have worries attached.

Our post here is just a short post, it doesn’t even begin to cover the broader aspect of dietary fats and what foods to feed to ensure you are feeding the best fats possible to your feathered friend. Please stay tuned for Part 2 of “Dietary Fat-An Overview for Companion Birds“. In addition, I will be going into depth about dietary fats in the book I am writing about companion bird nutrition.

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