 Just like with everything else humans are biologically designed to consume for nutritional purposes, plants are the BEST source of essential fatty acids (EFA).
These fatty acids are called "essential" to differentiate them from the fatty acids that serve as fuel purposes. Essential fatty acids are required for biological processes, not fuel processes. Again, there is a difference.
Essential fatty acids are important for human health. They are molecules that cannot be synthesized by the body but vital for normal metabolism.
When essential fatty acids were first discovered (in 1923) they were classified and designated as a vitamin, Vitamin F to be exact. It wasn't until 1930 that essential fatty acids were classified and designated as fats or along with fats instead of vitamins.
Essential fatty acids are fatty acids that human beings must ingest because the body requires these substances for optimal health and well-being.
Essential fatty acids include, but are not limited to: Alpha-Linolenic Acid (an Omega-3 fatty acid), Linolenic Acid (an Omega-6 fatty acid), Gamma-Linolenic Acid (an Omega-6 fatty acid), Lauric Acid (a saturated fatty acid), Eicosapentaenoic Acid (EPA), Docosahexaenoic Acid (DHA), and Palmitoleic Acid (a monosaturated fatty acid).
Omega-3
 Omega 3 essential fatty acids are considered UNSATURATED fatty acids. These kinds of acids are double-bonded (carbon-carbon); they have a final carbon-carbon double bond in the n-3 position. This is scientific talk so don't go crazy trying to figure this out if you're not a technical and persnickety person. Just understand that Omega 3 is an unsaturated fatty acid.
Refrain from believing the hype that the best source of Omega 3 is derived from fish. This may be true for animals, but not for humans or the animals called humans. Humans can get all the Omega 3 they need from a plant called 'Flax.' The oil from the Flax plant is called Flax Oil or Flax Seed Oil. You can find it in health food stores.
Instead of obtaining Omega 3 oil from dead fish, why not obtain it from the source whereby many fish obtain if from, which is algae? A great natural source of Omega 3 oil is Alga oil, oil from algae.
Alga is a Latin term for 'seaweed.' Algae are a large and diverse group or classification of simple, typically autotrophic organisms. They range from multicellular and unicellular forms (such as the large Kelp seaweed that grows to 65+ meters in length).
Algae are photosynthetic like land plants, and simple because their tissues are not organized into the various and numerous distinct organs found in land plants.
The largest and most complex marine forms are called seaweeds, the most nutritionally abundant food we have access to on the planet, the Moringa plant being its land equivalent.
Wheat Germ oil is another good source of Omega-3 essential fatty acid. You also find Omega-3 essential fatty acids in green plants, e.g. green and Romaine lettuce, Kale, Spinach, Purslane, and Broccoli; as well as legumes, e.g. Kidney beans, Navy beans, Pinto beans, Lima beans, Peas and Split peas; and fruit, e.g. citrus (Orange, Lemon, Lime, Grapefruit), melon (Watermelon, Cantaloupe, Crenshaw, Honey Dew).
Please note that when you cook Omega 3s, you damage them. Oxidation results. Sorry pro-fried fish consumers. Fried fish contains absolutely no Omega-3 essential fatty acids whatsoever. Raw is just simply best for us humans, as much as we can tolerate raw foods.
Omega-6
 Omega-6 essential fatty acids are UNSATURATED fatty acids. Omega-6 essential fatty acids include, but not limited to: Linoleic Acid, Gamma-Linoleic Acid, and Arachidonic Acid (which is the precursor for prostaglandins).
Now even though Omega-6 (polyunsaturated fatty acids, PUFAs) are plant-derived, some of the vegetable sources they are derived from are highly suspect and insalubrious, and they include soybean, cotton (which is not even a food), palm, and rapeseed (disguised as Canola oil). These oils should be avoided at all costs.
A high consumption of Omega-6 polyunsaturated-fatty acids (commonly found in vegetable oils) have been implicated in certain diseases, including various cancers.
It is actually man messing around with certain oils (processing them) that make them insalubrious. And again, certain oils, e.g. cottonseed oil, should not even be consumed. Cotton is not a food, but a fabric.
Omega-9
 Omega-9 is a family of fatty acids which includes Stearic acid and Oleic acid, two major fatty acids. Stearic acid is a SATURATED fat which can be converted to Oleic acid, which is MONO-UNSATURATED.
"Oleic acid is the most abundant fatty acid found in Nature and the primary oil produced by skin glands." - Vegan Peace
Because it is naturally produced by the human body, Omega-9 is considered a nonessential fatty acid and does not need to be supplemented.
When there is lack or insufficiency of Omega-3 and Omega-6, the body uses Omega-9. The body produces Omega-9 so as to compensate for Omega-3 and Omega-6.
The best source for all three essential fatty acids (Omega 3, 6, and 9) is Black Currant Seed oil, followed by Hemp Seed oil.
Other good sources of Omega 3 and Omega 6 EFAs include Flax Seed oil, Wheat Germ oil, Safflower oil, and Evening Primrose oil.
Thank you for reading!
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