Flax & good fats/bad fats

[Guest guest]

Hi (and others interested in the 'good fats/bad fats/flax' topic);

I just corresponded with Kim on this and thought it would interest you as well:

I checked my copy of Udo Erasmus's book, " Fats that Heal, Fats that

Kill " and this is what it says:

" Whole flax nutrition. If you swallow flax seeds whole, your body will not

get the nutrients they contain, because they are protected by a tough seed

coat. After the seeds go through you, you could plant them and they would

still grow. To break the seed coat and make the nutrients available for

digestion, grind whole flax seeds in a small grinder ... . In this way, you

get the freshest, best-tasting, least spoiled possible, plus all of the

other nutrients contained in flax. Even better results can be expected from

flax if vitamin and mineral intake is optimized.

Note: Take freshly ground flax with plenty of fluid, because its mucilage

absorbs 5 times the seed's weight of water. ...

1 tablespoon of flax contains about 1 teaspoon of oil ... "

Kim's experience seems to be that some oil does escape when she is using just

the unground seeds. I wonder if it is inevitable that some seeds are cracked and

so they leak some oil and nutrients.

The Omega Diet book that Kim recommended is excellent. I also like Erasmus's

book that I mentioned above ... particularly because it explains the

biochemistry of essential fatty acids (among other things). I think, for CF,

learning about essential fatty acids is particularly valuable because knowledge

of the difference in fats seems to be a weak area in CF care in most clinics.

Reseaarch has shown that people with CF have a larger than normal imbalance

between DHA and AA (essential fatty acids) ... way too much AA and deficient in

DHA. By the way, they are called 'essential' fatty acids because the body can't

make them ... they must be obtained through diet. Diet alone cannot correct the

imbalance but substantially increasing the Omega 3s in diet certainly can't hurt

and some evidence is emerging that it can make a difference.

M