Fish & Cod Liver Oil--Not Flax--Lower Inflammation

[Guest guest]

(I agree with Mercola's statements)

 

Fish & Cod Liver Oil--Not Flax--Lower Inflammation

By Dr. Joseph Mercola

March 30, 2004

 

http://mercola.com/blog/2004/mar/30/fish__cod_liver_oil__not_flax__lower_inflamm\

ation

 

Most of you know I am a major fan of cod liver and fish oil. I write about

it so much that when you type in cod liver oil in Google my articles comes

up number one and fish oil comes up number 6 (this is amazing to me as

there are over 4 million indexed articles on fish oil). When I read this

new study this morning I was prompted to do a little mini review update on

how you can optimize your health benefits with these oils and clear up some

confusion many people have.

 

Your body cannot make omega-3 fats, it must get them from your diet. There

are two main options, vegetable- or animal-based omega-3 fats. The major

animal omega-3 fat is fish and cod liver oils and they are loaded with high

order omega-3 fats like EPA and DHA. The primary plant-based omega-3 is

flax and it has ALA. Many are not aware of the study I posted two years ago

that showed ALA from flax is not equivalent in its biological effects to

the long-chain omega-3 fats found in fish and cod liver oils. Your body

converts only about 1 percent of ALA into EPA and even far less into DHA,

which is a longer fat.

 

You many not know that it is DHA, not EPA, that is one of the primary fats

in your brain. A new study now points out that DHA, and not EPA, is

primarily responsible for the positive immune stimulation benefits of fish

and cod liver oils as they suppress a number of markers of immune function

including:

* Lymphocyte proliferation

* Cytotoxic T lymphocyte activity

* Natural killer (NK) cell activity

* Production of cytokines in laboratory animals

 

It is my impression that large numbers of people are seriously confused on

this issue. I am always surprised when I lecture across the country how

many people are still consuming flax seed oil. Flax seed oil should be

given to a neighbor or relative that you don't like. Please don't use it.

Nearly all of us benefit from the ALA in flax, but we should not consume

flax as an oil, it should be consumed as freshly ground organic flaxseeds.

This decreases oxidation of the perishable fats and also provides valuable

water-soluble fibers called lignins.

 

It is also unwise to consume DHA by itself. Even though it is likely far

more important than EPA, it is wise to consume them in their natural

ratios. If you ever look at a cod liver oil label, you will see that

although EPA and DHA are the primary fats there are clearly other fats in

there that the body uses and have not been clearly identified as being

useful. However, the whole fish food oil, not an isolated extract of DHA or

EPA/DHA, is what is most likely going to provide all the omega-3 health

benefits you need.

 

American Journal of Clinical Nutrition April 2004;79(4) 674-681