Wednesday, April 6, 2011

Some Omega 3s Are "More Equal" Than Others

http://www.tropicaltraditions.com/organic_whole_flaxseed.htm
And this is an example of the ones that are less equal. Flax seed does indeed have O3 fatty acids, but they are the short chain variety.  These do not become the long branched chain O3s that we probably do need to supplement, given that most of us ingest too much O6 fatty acids.

Ideally, we don't eat a whole bunch of either O6 or long branched chain O3 fatty acids, as they are poly unsaturated fats which tend to oxidize and create undesirable results.  But since we all likely eat too much O6, we have to get enough O3s to balance the 6s; ideally, a 2 to 1 ratio or thereabouts. The hard part is that the test to evaluate your success in balancing this ratio costs about $150 bucks.

With apologies to Sir Winston, flax seed is the kind of omega 3s "up with which I will not put."

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