Give Omega 3 to the Poor

[pipsicle]

Omega 3 has been implicated in ameliorating the symptoms of depression, ME, and ADHD.

Conventional doctors appear uninterested....

Give omega-3 to the poor, says UK researcher
By Shane Starling, 11-Feb-2009
Related topics: Omega-3, Industry, Nutritional lipids and oils, Cardiovascular health, Cognitive and mental function


A paper published in a British Nutrition Foundation (BNF) journal has called for omega-3 supplements to be made available to lower socio-economic groups because low income earners have the most to gain from using them.



The paper also called for greater education about the role of omega-3 in the diet of a nation that is blatantly “not an ‘oily fish-loving’” country.




“Making high-quality supplements more available to those subgroups of the population who may not normally be able to afford them, and may be likely to benefit most from them, could help individuals to achieve optimal health,” wrote Igennus nutrition scientist, Dr Nina Bailey.


The BNF pointed out its views and Bailey's were not necessarily aligned. Igennus is a UK-based company that funded the paper entitled, “Current choices in omega-3 supplementation”.


Bailey added: “Substantial research is needed to clarify the role that long-chain fatty acids play in health and disease to enable the public to modulate their diet accordingly. The use of supplements and the attempts to fortify foodstuffs could play an important role in improving our intake of n-3 fatty acids, at least in some groups.”





Public awareness




Bailey noted that with increased public awareness of health issues and a growing food supplements market, more emphasis should be given to “educating the public more thoroughly about the biological roles that these fats play.”




She warned that further research was needed and that quality product needed to be made more widely available to consumers.




“While supplementation is an easy way of modifying fatty acid intake, the quality of many cheaper products favoured by the public as the ‘value for money’ option are unlikely to offer the same health benefits as those that are molecularly distilled to exclude impurities and maximise concentrations of the active ingredients eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA).”




The BNF has long been a supporter of the idea that one can attain all the nutrients one needs through the consumption of whole foods.


Many large food and ingredients companies such as Arla, PepsiCo, Coca-Cola, Danone, Ajinomoto, Mars and Unilever are BNF members.


This story has been amended to reflect the fact that the views of the researcher are not those of the BNF.

[Ratiocinator]

Fish get their omega-3 from marine phytoplankton. Humans should get their omega-3 from the same source.

A few sources of omega-3:

Green leafy vegetables,
flax (linn) seed,
Hemp seed,
Walnuts,
Pumpkin seed,

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=7305832096911620394&ei=rf3QSb-vNs2Q-AaNzrmuDw&q=dr+rick+dina


http://www.dailyexpress.co.uk/posts/view/91312/Piven-confident-he-can-prove-mercury-poisoning

Actor JEREMY PIVEN is confident he will be cleared of allegations he faked a health scare to allow him to pull out of Broadway play SPEED-THE-PLOW as he prepares to defend his honour in an arbitration hearing.

The Entourage star stepped down from the show in December (08), citing severe fatigue. He claims he was diagnosed with toxic mercury poisoning and blames regular sushi meals for his medical woes. [...]

[pipsicle]

Fish get their omega-3 from marine phytoplankton. Humans should get their omega-3 from the same source.

A few sources of omega-3:

Green leafy vegetables,
flax (linn) seed,
Hemp seed,
Walnuts,
Pumpkin seed,

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=7305832096911620394&ei=rf3QSb-vNs2Q-AaNzrmuDw&q=dr+rick+dina


Ratio, I don't mean to offend you... Are you vegetarian or just worried about pollution? AFAIK there are brands of ultra-pure E-EPA out there, but you have to be careful. I bought "pure" Cod Liver Oil from Seven Seas. It had turned to lard in my fridge the following day.

I've heard that, as it's EPA that is needed by the brain, taking E-EPA straight is a more effective way of building long fatty acid chains in the brain than taking Flax Seed, which will only change a small amount of ALA into EPA.

[Ratiocinator]

Ratio, I don't mean to offend you... Are you vegetarian or just worried about pollution?

Both. Many are vegetarian in order to prevent pollution. A person can prevent more pollution by becoming vegan than by giving-up their car!

AFAIK there are brands of ultra-pure E-EPA out there, but you have to be careful. I bought "pure" Cod Liver Oil from Seven Seas. It had turned to lard in my fridge the following day.

I've heard that, as it's EPA that is needed by the brain, taking E-EPA straight is a more effective way of building long fatty acid chains in the brain than taking Flax Seed, which will only change a small amount of ALA into EPA.

The higher forms of omega-3, DHA and EPA, are readily converted from the lower forms, such as those found in flax seed. However, vegan DHA and EPA is available in supplement form or straight from the wholefood source, such as marine phytoplankton, which is where the fish get theirs from, as I wrote above.

It is important to eat properly to permit the body the chance to convert lower omega-3 into the higher forms. Omega-6 should not be over consumed; the ideal omega-3 to omega-6 ratio is 1:1. The maximum limit of 4-parts omega-6 to 1-part omega-3 should never be exceeded.

More info in the video I posted above.

It would be better to remove the bad foods and the high omega-6 food from the poor than to give them omega-3.

[darketernal]

Both. Many are vegetarian in order to prevent pollution. A person can prevent more pollution by becoming vegan than by giving-up their car!



The higher forms of omega-3, DHA and EPA, are readily converted from the lower forms, such as those found in flax seed. However, vegan DHA and EPA is available in supplement form or straight from the wholefood source, such as marine phytoplankton, which is where the fish get theirs from, as I wrote above.

It is important to eat properly to permit the body the chance to convert lower omega-3 into the higher forms. Omega-6 should not be over consumed; the ideal omega-3 to omega-6 ratio is 1:1. The maximum limit of 4-parts omega-6 to 1-part omega-3 should never be exceeded.

More info in the video I posted above.

It would be better to remove the bad foods and the high omega-6 food from the poor than to give them omega-3.


Plant based ALA is converted to EPA and DHA by the human body at a 10-20% rate, and as long as your n-3 to n-6 ratio is in check and you eat sufficient ALA it is possible to get all of your ALA from vegetable sources.

As for having a high n-6 to n-3 ratio, over 90% of people in the US have a dangerously high ratio. This is primarily due to our grain-based diet (which includes both meat eaters and vegetarians as animals fed grains are also extremely unhealthy and have horrible lipid profiles which has a massive effect on people eating them) instead of a diet based on greens. The next cause of this behind grains is the excessive amounts of peanut oil and soy oil that finds its way into processed foods, both of which contain damaged, thus unhealthy, forms of n-6 and no n-3's, which further pushes up the already high n-6 to n-3 ratios in our diets.

While I wholeheartly endorse the EFA ratios of n-3 to n-6 in flax seeds and flax oil (which is over 2:1) the best option is to minumize n-6 intake to avoid needing an excess of flax oil in one's diet, because like soy, but to a lesser extent, there are phytoestragens in flax that have a number of negative effects on our health and reproductive systems if ingested in more than trace amounts.

[pipsicle]

While I wholeheartly endorse the EFA ratios of n-3 to n-6 in flax seeds and flax oil (which is over 2:1) the best option is to minumize n-6 intake to avoid needing an excess of flax oil in one's diet, because like soy, but to a lesser extent, there are phytoestragens in flax that have a number of negative effects on our health and reproductive systems if ingested in more than trace amounts.


That was my dilemma with flax as well, as pleasant as I found it... Other things being equal it contains the perfect b6 n3 ratio, but our diet is flooded with omega 6 already.

vegan DHA and EPA is available in supplement form or straight from the wholefood source, such as marine phytoplankton, which is where the fish get theirs from, as I wrote above.

I've tried Spirulina. Is that a form of marine phytoplankton?

[Ratiocinator]

I've tried Spirulina. Is that a form of marine phytoplankton?

No. It's a blue-green algae.

[al209]

Fish get their omega-3 from marine phytoplankton. Humans should get their omega-3 from the same source.



How would one go about harvesting marine phytoplankton with simple tools? Surely its easier to catch a fish? Would a prehistoric man reject fish in favour of it? I doubt it.

Perhaps David Wolfe's ancestors were around back then to overcharge for it..

[Ratiocinator]

How would one go about harvesting marine phytoplankton with simple tools? Surely its easier to catch a fish? Would a prehistoric man reject fish in favour of it? I doubt it.

Perhaps David Wolfe's ancestors were around back then to overcharge for it..

Plenty of people are selling it as liquid and powder, and it generally comes without mercury - unlike fish, or course.

moreover, apparently it was consumed by ancient peoples of various regions.

Most fish is farmed, and is thus lacking many nutrients, as well as living a miserable life of confinement.

marine phytoplankton, however, is very successfully farmed:

http://phytoplankton.moonfruit.com/

[darketernal]

Most fish is farmed, and is thus lacking many nutrients, as well as living a miserable life of confinement.
http://phytoplankton.moonfruit.com/

Right, there is a world of difference between farmed salmon and fresh catch salmon in terms of their EPA and DHA content.

They even inject farmed salmon with red dye so that the meat in the package looks like like fresh catch, because the flesh of farmed salmon is actually grey, due to missing nutrients which it would normally have had in the wild.

[pipsicle]

Plenty of people are selling it as liquid and powder, and it generally comes without mercury - unlike fish, or course.

moreover, apparently it was consumed by ancient peoples of various regions.

Most fish is farmed, and is thus lacking many nutrients, as well as living a miserable life of confinement.

marine phytoplankton, however, is very successfully farmed:

http://phytoplankton.moonfruit.com/

I'm 40 minutes into the Rick Dina video....

This may sound like an unintentionally dumb question but.... What is the advantage of marine phytoplankton over standard blue green algae?

[morjo]

Are Omega 3 capsules any good? Obviously they are not going to be as good as eating oily fish.

[darketernal]

Are Omega 3 capsules any good? Obviously they are not going to be as good as eating oily fish.

Fish oil caps? Yes, but you need to check the date on them, keep them in the fridge and use them all or throw them out within 6 weeks. Check the label and see if they have filtered out the mercury.

And note the fish oil (usually salmon) is not the same as cod liver oil when you are looking through suppliments. Cod liver oil is not high in n-3's and is taken for the vitamin A, which is already over-supplimented in half the foods we eat.

[pipsicle]

Are Omega 3 capsules any good? Obviously they are not going to be as good as eating oily fish.

I've found them to be better... Apparently the amount of fish you would need to eat to get your required daily amount of god fats would put you at rick of vit A poisoning. If you want to eat fish mackerel is the healthiest. It's been suggested to me that one should eat no more than two servings a week because of all the mercury fish have been exposed to.

There are cheap fish oils out there, but IMO they have very little of the ingredients that you need (EPA and DHA). I buy from a company which prepared pure EPA. They figure that the brain will make its own DHA where necessary, and ingesting DHA may interfere with the absorption of EPA within the brain.

[pipsicle]

Alert: If you wish to try Vegepa (http://www.vegepa.com) free, I had an offer from them with my latest supply. If I (as an existing customer) introduce you, you can sample the product free.

I realise we don't know each other and that this may affect your disposition to the offer (also that I might sound like some salesman, when the timing really is just coincidence).

Still, if you're interested, pm me.

[pipsicle]

Sorry... ignore the above.... I misread their offer and it's not quite as good a deal as I first thought.