OMEGA 3 FISH OIL IS GOOD FOR CANCER PATIENTS

Grandma Knew Best:
“Give ‘Em A Dose Of Cod Liver Oil!”

Why Fish Oil?

Omega 3 is medium chain triglyceride (MCT). In my last post, I discussed the reasons why MCT’s are particularly good for cancer patients. Now, let’s talk about Fish Oil as the best source of Omega 3 for cancer patients.

Omega 3 comes from plants (seeds and nuts), grain fed beef and fish. The active ingredients are EPA (eicosapentaenoic acid) and DHA (docosahexaenoic acid).

Omega-3 from vegetables such as flax or perilla seeds (vegetable based omega-3) or beef requires significantly more enzyme activity to break down into DHA and EPA, and provide them in amounts helpful to the human body. In particular, a person with cancer may have inflammatory issues or metabolic problems (a person who is borderline or in Cachexia, perhaps) and, thus, can be lacking in the right kind or amount of enzymes to utilize vegetable based omega-3. Fish oil breaks down faster and easier, so fish oil is better. Seeds and nuts require time and a lot of enzymes for the food to be broken down into EPA and DHA.

Guests and Fish “Stink” After 3 Days — If Not Treated Right That Is

Fish oil goes rancid. So — buy fish oils in capsules and glass bottles, and refrigerate the bottle. If they come in a box (as even the high quality ones do these days, below) transfer them to dark colored glass, airtight bottle before putting in the refrigerator. If they are sold in airtight blister packs, don’t take them out of the pack, just stick the entire sheet in a light sensitive container and refrigerate. Also, don’t store fish oil or any other MTC in a plastic bag — it leaches.

Well, Excuuuuuuuuse Me!

Refrigeration helps with the taste, aftertaste and (oops) burping! Some fish oil comes in liquid form and is lime or lemon flavored. I’ve heard deep refrigeration really cuts the taste (think Vodka stored in the freezer) but does not hurt the content. (But don’t freeze.)

One Fish Oil, Hold the Toxins.

Fresh Fish for Oil!

Some fish oil contains toxins such as mercury. That’s why you want to buy from a reputable dealer. Some have too little EPA and DHA — the active elements in Omega-3. In fact, you might want to take these two acids in differing amounts; i.e., some fish oil high in EPA and some high in DHA for different purposes. For instance, DHA has been shown to reduce production of insulin or have no effect on mood. So if you are trying to regulate insulin or control mood, you might need more or less DHA. Read, Fran McCullough’s great book, Good Fat, published by Scribner, for more on this issue. Her writing is really user friendly.

Sources of pure, so-called “pharmaceutical grade” fish oil, with high levels of EPA and DHA, are:

OmegaBrite  http://www.omegabrite.com
Sears Formula (Dr. Sears created the “Zone Die”) http://www.zonediet.com
Natrol http://www.natrol.com/hearthealth/4040-omega-3fishoil/

Who takes what?

(From “Good Fat” by Fran McCollough)

• Bruce Holub, Canadian omega-3 researcher, takes 3 grams of fish oil daily
• Barry Sears, Creator the Zone Diet, takes 9 grams of fish oil daily
• Dr. Georges Mouton, a Belgian omega-3 researcher, takes fish oil daily for 6 months and vegetable oil daily for the other 6 months.

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