For those of you who missed this wonderful teleclass, presented by Aimee Raupp, acupuncturist, author and women’s health advocate, here is a link to the taped class.
Did you know that Chinese Medicine refers to the female reproductive system as the richest place on earth? It’s the foundation for life itself, but are you caring for it correctly so that you can get pregnant when you want to? Aimee has helped facilitate hundreds of pregnancies – many to women who were told their chances of getting pregnant were slim. Just in time for Pregnancy Awareness Month this May, Aimee presented a wonderful teleclass on the topic of how to prepare for and have a healthy pregnancy.
One of the topics discussed in the teleclass was the importance of and difference between “oils”. Below is a blog post from Aimee’s website that gives an overview.
Fish oil, cod liver oil and flax seed oil. What’s the difference?
We all know that omega 3 essential fatty acids (EFAs) are great for our health… but, what is the best source of them?
Well, you know me – I’d prefer that we all ate a diet rich in omega 3s (and low in omega 6s) as these EFAs help reduce inflammation (the type that causes pain, acne, arthritis, certain digestive disorders, really any disease state), balance our hormones, prevent cardiovascular disease, beautify our skin from the inside out, make our joints more flexible, our moods more balanced, our concentration more focused and they even improve our sex drive. Woo!
The best dietary sources of EFAs are:
* Walnuts
* Eggs
* Seafood such as herring, sardines, mackerel, anchovies, oysters and salmon
* Flax seeds (the seed, not the oil! I’ll explain…)
* Pumpkin seeds
However, eating a serving of each of these foods per day may not give you all the EFAs your body desires. So, personally, I recommend supplementing with an EFA.
This is where the fun begins. When you walk into the health food store there are probably 50 EFA touting supplements to choose from…flax seed oil, fish oil, cod liver oil, EPA/DHA… the list goes on…
Let’s break it down for you.
Flax Seeds. These little guys are a great source of omega 3s. However, most people prefer to swig down the oil to eating the seeds. Here’s the thing: once the seeds are made into oil, they lose some of their health promoting luster. The oil lacks the fiber and the lignans that are present in the seeds. There is even argument that flax seed oil is an unstable oil (which is why it’s not recommended for cooking) and has great potential to go rancid inside our bodies (causing more harm than good).
The other big factor with getting your omega 3s from flax is that flax doesn’t directly contain EPA or DHA– it contains ALA (which is a precursor to EPA and DHA). So, your body has to take in this ALA and then metabolize it into EPA and DHA. If it sounds like more work, it is.
Bottom line, if you want to get omega 3s from flax, you need to eat the seeds, not the oil. Get some whole seeds, grind them in your coffee bean grinder and sprinkle them on your salad or yogurt. But, don’t pop that flax seed oil pill or swing it down. And, don’t count on flax alone to be your major source of omega 3’s.
Fish oil and Cod Liver oil. Both are also a great source of omega 3s. And, both oils unlike flax contains EPA and DHA. There’s no extra work required here.
Now, the difference between fish oil and cod liver oil is that cod liver oil is rich in both vitamin’s A and D. Both vitamin A and D are important in bone health (by working in conjunction with calcium), help boost the immune system, regulate hormones and maintain the health of your heart.
Personally, in my practice, I recommend people take cod liver oil over fish oil.
The biggest issue with taking either cod liver oil or fish oil is whether or not it’s contaminated by the likes of mercury and heavy metal (because our poor fish are swimming in such toxic waters these days). So, make it your business to stick with oil that comes from deep-water fish and only take certain tried and true brands that adhere to strict extraction and distillation processes and keep their oil clean and toxin-free.
Here are my favorite brands:
Don’t worry, I’ve done the work for you. The best brands out there are:
* Green Pasture’s Blue Ice Fermented Cod Liver Oil
* Garden of Life Olde World Icelandic Cod Liver Oil
* Carlson’s Cod Liver Oil
Personally, I take a daily dose of the Green Pasture’s Fermented Cod Liver Oil as the fermentation process makes this oil easier to digest (and it shouldn’t repeat on you). Plus, I just love the Green Pasture’s company.
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Check out this video on Aimee’s “Top 3 Favorite Fertility Foods” and read here why liver (yes, liver!) is so good for fertility.
Aimee can be reached at aimee@aimeeraupp.com
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The views and opinions expressed on this blog are purely the blog contributor’s. Any product claim, statistic, quote or other representation about a product or service should be verified with the manufacturer or provider. Writers may have conflicts of interest, and their opinions are their own.