FLAXSEED OIL: The king of the vegetable oils

Fish oil may be the Hercules of omega-3 health supplements, but flaxseed oil also serves us very well. An extract of the reddish brown flaxseed that grows in the northern part of the United States and throughout Canada, flaxseed oil is an extremely important source of an omega-3 fat called alpha-linolenic acid (ALA). This eicosanoid precursor possesses many of fish oil’s immune-enhancing and anti-inflammatory effects. It is also a good protector of the cardiovascular system, deterring the clotting tendency of platelets, lowering cholesterol and reducing blood pressure. Many benefits of the Mediterranean diet may stem from its rich content of the omega-3s like those found in flaxseed oil. While fish oil may be more potent, flaxseed may be a little more affordable for people to use on a daily basis.

While the oil is remarkable, don’t discount the value of the entire flaxseed. An excellent source of fibre, flaxmeal contains cancer-opposing compounds called lignans, which work to deactivate die more cell-stimulating forms of oestrogen. At the very least, this helps to mitigate the hormone’s monthly influence on premenstrual tension, but a more dramatic result could be the power of the antiestrogenic lignans, along with additional support from the omega-3s, to help prevent breast tumours and other hormonally based cancers. I also give fresh flaxmeal to many of my colon cancer patients, encouraging them to consume at least 85 grams of the freshly ground meal per day.

Supplement Suggestions for All the OMEGA-3 s
Fish or flax? When should you take supplements of flaxseed oil, and what occasions call for fish oils? The body will convert flax oil’s fatty acids into EPA and DHA, but this may take weeks. Even when it does occur, the blood’s DHA concentration won’t equal that achieved by fish oils. Therefore fish oil is die better choice for a more immediate response or for easing wiflammation or lowering triglycerides.

To safeguard all of the essential fish oils, you need to take vitamin E. DHA and EPA are extremely unstable and prone to degradation, both in the supplement bottle and in your body. If this occurs, they can actually be harmful. To minimized peroxidation threat, take at least 400 IU of vitamin E along with your fish oils.

Given DHA’s importance to babies, mothers-to-be should take supplements for the duration of their pregnancy. However the baby’s need is most critical from the beginning of the last trimester through at least the first three months of life. If the omega-3s are in short supply, the baby could be born with a low birth weight. DHA supplements further enrich breast milk with omega-3 fats, and they manage to reserve some of their therapeutic assistance for Mum. Without them, postpartum depression is more likely. Mothers-to-be should take at least 1,000 mg of DHA per day along with at least 1 teaspoon of flaxseed oil. In one study, 1,000 mg of DHA and 1,600 mg of EPA were provided by supplements and sardines; in two months they raised the plasma DHA by 45 per cent.
For those who want to maintain a vegetable-based omega-3 presence in the body, take between 1 teaspoon and 1 tablespoon of flaxseed oil daily. When a therapeutic effect is needed, you may need to take up to 3 tablespoons per day. Make sure to purchase an organic oil that comes in a black opaque container. As I’ve mentioned, light and heat oxidizes and destroys it, so never use it in cooking. It’s fine for a salad, though.

With virtually no exceptions, save the few just mentioned, nearly anyone can safely take either of the two omega-3s in the quantities suggested. But if you were to take prodigious quantities (over 5,000 mg) for six months, you would then oxidize the fats in your red blood cells. The ‘if some is good, then more is better’ school of thought rarely applies in nutrition. Because fish oil so powerfully inhibits platelet clumping, some have cautioned that it may lengthen the time it takes for a cut to stop bleeding. Research shows, however that no danger exists for greater blood loss. In fact, fish oil can be taken in low doses even before surgery. Even those on warfarin-type blood thinners need not avoid fish oils or vitamin E, because the platelet-separation system and the vitamin К antagonist system (conventional anticoagulants) use completely different mechanisms and their effects are not additive.
The most ideal treatment for my patients is to take both fish oil and flaxseed oil (and — as you will soon learn – GLA). On page 000, you will learn about the essential oils formula I prescribe to almost all my patients. If we learn anything about essential fatty acids, it is that health depends on balance. Now that the omega-3 fats are becoming more widely accepted and considered by scholars to be a part of every good medical practice, the research papers will convince our primary care doctors to prescribe them.