Linoleic acid (LA) is an unsaturated omega-6 fatty acid.
Linoleic acid belongs to one of the two families of essential fatty acids or EFA’s. Our bodies are unable to synthesize (or manufacture these acids) from other food components, and EFA’s must be consumed as food or supplemented to maintain good health. The second essential fatty acid is alpha-linolenic acid or Omega-3.
Linoleic acid is plentiful in numerous nuts, fatty seeds (flax seeds, hemp seeds, poppy seeds, sesame seeds, etc.) and their vegetable oils; containing over half of the weight oils of poppy seed, safflower, sunflower, corn, and soybean.
Deficiencies in linoleate (the salt form of the acid) caused mild skin scaling, hair loss, and poor wound healing in animals.