Quote:
Originally Posted by Steve  I'd actually shoot for fish oils before flax. I mean, they're both great.... but the conversion to eicosapentanoic and docosohexanoic acid is pretty crappy with flax.
What's your take on this? |
Well, I actually prefer flax oil over fish oil because:
1. In Jane's case, flax oil is easier to incorporate into her
diet for the benefit of caloric density. She could eat more fish rich on omega 3's, but that's less calorically dense than simply adding flax oil to her foods or making a salad dressing out of it. Plus, flax oil is more palatable than drinking down spoonfulls of fish oil. Ugh!
2. There's controversy as to whether or not ALA is efficiently converted to DHA and EPA in flax oil, so it's definitely not conclusive at this point. It is known, however, that flax oil is the richest plant-based form of omega-3's so much so that even if the conversion is less efficient, as little as 1 Tbsp still provides more than the necessary amount required for health benefits.
There are measures one can take to improve the conversion of ALA to EPA and DHA, such as decreasing alcohol, saturated
fat, and trans
fat intake (all of which inhibit conversion).
3. Fish oil carries a bit more risk (especially in supplemental form) due to the potential presence of pollutants. Flax oil is just a more raw, less processed way to get omega-3's.
4. Lastly, flax oil tends to be cheaper than fish oil.
