The Hemp Connection:
fish

This is to address some great questions about fish oil that Katie sent in.

Katie asked:
after reading about fish oil and its obvious benefits, I finally bought some Carlson Super Omega-3 Fish Oil Concentrate soft gels yesterday at Whole Foods.

I have several questions I have tried to get answered via this site and the Internet, but can't seem to find clear answers, so I am throwing them out here, in hopes you can help.

1. The bottle says"Each Carlson Super Omega — 3 soft gel contains 1000 mg (1 gram) of a special concentrate of fish body oils from deep, cold-water fish which are especially rich in the important Omega-3's EPA and DHA." However, the Supplemental Facts read EPA 300 mg DHA 200 mg Other Omega-3's 100mg. I believe that adds up to 600mg. Right? There is no mention of the other 400 mg. Where are they? I'm very confused about this. Can you explain this to me? There is also Natural Vitamin E — 10 IU…incase that means something.

2. How many pills/mg am I supposed to take? I read between 1000 mg and 3000 mg. Which makes me confused again because even though the bottle says 1000 mg in each pill I can only find 600 of them! I want to make sure that I am taking enough, but not taking too much! How much do you take? Also, do I work up to that or just dive in?

3. Last question…is there anything else I should be taking with the fish oil? I know that sometimes if you take something you need to supplement with something else. Is that the case here?

Thank you in advance for your advice and information!

My response:
Katie, these are really great questions and something that I am often asked by my clients. Here's the scoop:

1. The dosage on the ingredient list can indeed be very confusing and frankly I believe it is a way in which some supplement companies try to give the impression that you are getting a better product with higher potency, but it can be misleading. When the label states something like…"contains 1000 mg marine oil", you are not getting the complete information.

The critical ingredients and the amounts you need to know about are — how much EPA (eicosapentanoic acid) and DHA (docosahexaenoic acid) are contained in each capsule.

EPA and DHA have been shown to support healthy functioning of the cardiovascular, immune, gastrointestinal, and musculoskeletal systems. EPA is also an excellent anti-inflammatory and helpful in conditions such as insulin resistance, diabetes and auto-immune related inflammation.

DHA is an important factor for those with PCOS as it supports many aspects of health including pregnancy, fetal development, and healthy neurological function.

The other"marine lipids" are simply the total fat of the fish, where the EPA and DHA are the active portions of that fat. It is the"actives" that are providing the therapeutic value. The vitamin E in the capsules is for preservative purposes and helps prevent rancidity of the fat.

2. Regarding the dosage you should take, that is a harder question to answer because it will depend on what you are trying to target. Those with PCOS should be targeting anywhere from 500 — 1000 mg. DHA. So you need to know how much DHA is in each cap, for example if the capsule has only 200mg. of DHA, you'll need to take 3 of them to get approximately 500mg. You can then work up to a higher dose, always start with the lower dose and work your way up. Sometimes it is easier to get a liquid version that is high potency versus taking handfuls of pills to achieve the same dose.

I do not recommend that you take a liquid fish oil that is derived from Cod Liver Oil as the source as it usually has a high amount of Vitamin A and it is possible to get toxic doses of vitamin A. Another thing to note is that in a combination EPA/DHA cap, the dosage EPA will usually be higher than the amount of DHA, that is no problem. The EPA will only be of additional benefit.

Don't hesitate consulting with a registered dietitian knowledgeable both in PCOS and supplements in order to have your supplementation tailored to your specific health needs — remember we are all different, with unique physiology, medical history and requirements.

3. Fish Oil does not have to be taken with anything else to enhance its function. It can be taken all at once, with meals, between meals — it is very flexible this way.

Here are a couple of additional tips:

- if you tend to"burp" back fish oil, make sure to buy a brand that comes in an"enterically coated capsule", they might cost a few cents more, but it's worth it.
- refrigerate your fish oil to protect it and this also can help reduce"burp back".
- contributes to creating beautiful, healthy skin.

One last fun fact about fish oil. Most of it actually comes from the southern hemisphere not as you might think from the deep waters off Norway!

Here's to fish oil!

Carmina McGee, MS, RD, LE
Ventura, California
805.816.2629
info@carminamcgee.com

I've written much about the important connection between the oceans' health and your own health.

There is an opportunity approaching this weekend which gives you an opportunity to make a difference, called LA Helps LA. Here is the information:

The event will be held on Sunday, October 3, from 3 pm to 7 pm, in a private loft at Dogtown Station in Venice, California. You will be provided the address after you register.

Small Pleasures Catering (http://www.smallpleasurescatering.com/ )is proud to announce that we will be joining forces with the food blogging community of Los Angeles, Uncle Darrow's Cajun/Creole Restaurant (http://www.uncledarrows.com/) and The Cheese Impresario (http://www.thecheeseimpresario.com/) to present a tasting fund raising event to benefit the Gulf Relief Network (GRN). We are also very happy to announce that with Hall Wines (http://www.hallwines.com/) of Napa, Ca is partnering with us and will be serving their wines at the event.

Just in- I'm so excited to announce that Catdaddy Carolina Moonshine (http://www.catdaddymoonshine.com/) is joining us to share New Orleans style cocktails made with their delicious new spirit.

GRN's (www.healthygulf.org) mission is to unite and empower people to protect and restore the natural resources of the Gulf of Mexico for future generations, and to assume the responsibility of returning the Gulf to its previous splendor.

Bloggers participating include:

Cheryl D. Lee of Black Girl Chef's Whites (http://blackgirlchefswhites.com/wordpress)

Agnieszka Graczyk of One More Bite (http://agablack.wordpress.com/)
Adair Seldon of Lentil Breakdown (http://lentilbreakdown.blogspot.com/)

Mac Ledesma of Dishin in the Kitchen (http://www.dishininthekitchen.com/)

Erika Penzer Kerekes of (http://www.inerikaskitchen.com/)

Rachael Hutchings of La Fujimama (http://www.lafujimama.com/)

Amir Thomas of Duo Dishes (http://www.duodishes.com/)

Susan Lesser of Reservations for Three (http://reservationforthree.blogspot.com/)

Greg Henry of Sippity Sup (http://www.sippitysup.com/)

Rashmi Nigam of Yumkid (http://www.yumkid.com/)

Raffle prizes have been donated by The Cheese Impresario, The Lisa Ekus Group, and the University of Louisiana at Lafayette Press Raffle tickets will sell for $2 each and 3 for $5. You need not be present to win.

More prizes just in -Chefs Susan Spicer and John Besh are donating signed copies of their cookbooks. Also, gift certificates from http://www.ilovebluesea.com/.

Latest raffle prize-a signed copy of Ralph Brennan's New Orleans Seafood Cookbook, and a gift certificate for dinner for 4 at Ralph Brennan's Jazz Kitchen at Disney Downtown. BIG THANKS!

Stay tuned for updates as more bloggers, partners and prize donors join us.

Tickets are $50

Please respond to Gisele@smallpleasurescatering.com to purchase tickets.

I guest blogged for Gisele about the connection between our respective professions. Click here to read more.

If so, it's worth your time to tune in to Chef Nancy Banner's interview on the basics of shopping for and cooking seafood, which is now in our archives at Blog Talk Radio. Thanks so much, Nancy, for getting our listeners ready to shed their phish phobia and get cookin!

I'm including some of the links and information here that we discussed while we chattted.

As Nancy mentioned, there were many videos to link to regarding how to remove skin from fish, with a simple Google search. Here is one that I found.

Nancy mentioned Coconut Secret, a soy-free"soy sauce", a great condiment for seafood cooking and eating.

Click here for more information on Nancy and her 30 day eating challenge.

We also mentioned three websites with lists of safe and sustainable seafood choices:
Natural Resources Defense Council Environmental Working Group Monterey Bay Aquarium
If you stayed on through the end of the interview, we mentioned Nancy's gluten-free organic doggie treats. They are available at the Noble Beast in Phoenix, Arizona.

Finally, here is Chef Nancy's recipe for Poached Fillet of Fish…how super easy is this?: )

Poached Fillet of Fish (Salmon, Cod, Trout, Ocean Perch)

Yield: 4 servings

Ingredients

• 1 # Fish fillets, cut into 4 equal pieces
• ½ C Lemon juice (not concentrate)
• 1 T Low sodium soy sauce, Bragg’s liquid aminos or soy-free substitute**

Directions

• Heat the lemon juice and soy sauce in a skillet on medium, until bubbly.
• Gently add the fish fillets. Once the liquid returns to a bubble, cover the pan and reduce heat to medium low.
• Simmer for 5 minutes. Turn the heat off and leave covered another 2-4 minutes.

** Coconut Aminos by Coconut Secret

Ten percent of women with PCOS will be type II diabetic by the time they are 40. One of the primary risks of pregnancy with PCOS is the same problem, diabetes. It is very important to understand that choices you make regarding food, activity, stress, and sleep, affect whether or not this problem…becomes YOUR problem.

Fortunately, in many cases, it is not necessary to do anything different than we already recommend in this blog. One study looked at four different ways diet could be manipulated to encourage weight loss: (1)calorie restriction without any seafood included, (2) calorie restriction with lean fish included, (3) calorie restriction including fatty fish, and (4) calorie restriction including fish oil pills. It didn't matter if it was lean fish, fatty fish, or fish oil pills…the more fish oil consumed, the better the insulin function.

I'm not one of those nutritionists who focuses entirely on salmon when advising to eat fish. First of all, it's simply not eco-expectable that there are enough salmon on the planet to feed everyone who needs omega-3's. Secondly, it's a seasonal fish and it's expensive enough to price itself out of the food budgets of many people I work with. A few years ago I looked up the omega-3 contents of many kinds of seafood, and discovered that whether it was salmon, shrimp, clams, tilapia…or bass…if it lived in the water, it had omega-3's in its flesh and it was a proactive health choice.

Don't like"fishy" flavor? Try halibut or tilapia. Or look for one of the many flavored fish oil supplements available in your local health food store. There's a way for anyone who has the will, and if you're at risk for diabetes…there's NO way you want to miss out on this wonderful dietary opportunity.

Ramel A, Martinéz A, Kiely M, Morais G, Bandarra NM, Thorsdottir I. Beneficial effects of long-chain n-3 fatty acids included in an energy-restricted diet on insulin resistance in overweight and obese European young adults. Diabetologia. 2008 Jul;51(7):1261-8.

Again, looking at this list of foods, I thought of the many vegans following our blog. If you're not seeing many foods here you can eat on a regular basis, think multivitamin.

Here's a great example, too, of why even though we love salmon for its omega-3 content, it is not showing up as a source of pantothenic acid. But there's cod, tuna, and lobster. The more you vary your diet, the easier it is to get all the nutrients you need to be in balance.

PCOS Diva does it again with her weekly menus! I almost felt bad about sending her such a short list but she comes up with great suggestions no matter what the challenge…thanks!

Fish, cod (cooked)

Tuna (light, canned in water)
Chicken
Egg
Milk
Yogurt
Broccoli (cooked)
Lentils (cooked)
Split peas (cooked)
Avocado
Sweet potato
Mushrooms
Lobster
Bread, whole wheat