Tag Archives: omega-3

Cod Liver Oil All That Its Cracked Up To Be?

First, before I tell the cod liver tale, I want to share my new breakfast concoction that is total yummo.  Total healthy.  Plus a secret ingredient that makes it all worthwhile.

Karen’s Yogurt Supreme

Ready?

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Fresh Blueberries

A couple of tablespoons of flax

A couple of tablespoons of Chia seed

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Full Fat (always.  If the fat is from a good source, it is terrific for us.) Organic PLAIN yogurt.

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A couple of tablespoons of pumpkin seeds. Preferably soaked and dried.

A couple of tablespoons of sunflower seeds.  Preferably soaked and dried.

About 8 drops of Stevia sweetener.

And now for the secret ingredient…..

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The darkest chocolate you can find.  Less sugar.  Less processed.

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A teaspoon (or more) of grated dark chocolate.  Ooooh myyyy goodnessss.  This breakfast is good.  And thoroughly healthy.  Every last drop.

Cod Liver Oil

I was reading an article about a gal who had extreme inflammation in her mouth.  Her dentist had her on antibiotics over the course of a year and did not help her.  Someone told her to take 1 1/2 t. cod liver in the morning and at night.   Also, she was told to do “oil pulling” which is where you put gobs of oil in your mouth and “chew” it for like 15 minutes and spit it out.  I have done this before and it is not pleasant, and made me gag.  I do believe it has medicinal qualities but the buck has to stop somewhere and that is where it stops for me.

5 months ago I went into my dentist for a cleaning and told them that it sorta hurt to bite down on popcorn.  Nothing else, just popcorn.  Next thing I knew I was in the chair getting a filling and a crown right next to each other.  I don’t know what they did in that process but I left the dentist not being able to chew on my right side at all.  So, I was no longer sad about not being able to chew popcorn.  I was sad about not being able to chew anything.   I kept going back to Mr. Dentist and they ended up crowning my new filling.  I now have two little crowns side by side.  Kingy and Queeny.  Fast forward 5 months… I still cannot chew on the right side.

When I read this gal’s story, I thought, I can at least try stepping up my cod liver intake from 1/4 teaspoon a day to 1 1/2 t.  and see what happens.  What happened?  I can chew on my right side.

Moral of this story?  Cod liver oil is an excellent anti-inflammatory.  It healed my king and queen.

It is filled with Omega 3.

You’ve heard of Omega 6 and Omega 3.  They are both wonderful for us….HOWEVER…… and I say that really loud……  We get Omega 6 from lots of foods.  All the oils especially, which whether we know it or not,  we eat so much of.   Nuts, seeds, butter…..all good stuff right?   Not good if you are not balancing it with Omega 3’s.  It is necessary to keep those balanced in our bodies or we open up huge opportunities for chronic inflammation and what not.

Omega 3 foods?   Flax.  Beef.   Fish.  Walnuts.  Tofu.  Things we do not eat a ton of.  Unless you’re like me, who is racing against the clock to see if I can eat 900 lbs. of beef before it goes bad in our fridge.

Cod liver oil is a great way to supplement so you can stay balanced.   I am reaching a point in my vitamin supplement journey that if I had to give up all but one of my supplements, I would keep the cod liver oil.

Let me just say that in my research on cod liver oil…I have found most oil has been processed with heat and has synthetic vitamins added back in.  NOT GOOD. Might as well not take it.    It keeps  coming back to the same brand.  It is the best on the market.  It is the bomb.

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It is the real deal.

I may have said before, that I am bankin’ on donuts galore in heaven.  Succulent cookies falling from the sky.  Ice cream fed to me from my chaise lounge down by the river.   I get my “version” of those things every so often but not as often as I would like.  Until then, I fill in the holes with cod liver oil.  I ain’t complainin’.

God bless,

Karen

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Omega What?

Omega 3.  What is it?  We are reading it on a  lot of labels, aren’t we?  Omega 6.  Same thing.  What the heck?  Why does it matter?  Sometimes I think the “whoe’er out there”  just makes this stuff up.     (I wont go there…I want to be positive)

But we DO need to talk about the Omega 6’s and 3’s.

Omega 6 AND 3 are fatty acids that we need for a healthy body.  Our body does not make them.  We  get them through our foods.  Once consumed, they are converted into the building blocks for hormones that control immune function, blood clotting, and cell growth as well as components of cell membranes.  In my book, important stuff.

THE IMPORTANT THING IS that it needs to be in balance in our bodies to work properly.   THE TYPICAL AMERICAN IS NOT BALANCED.   The ideal ratio is 2:1 (omega 6: omega 3). The typical American has a ratio of 20:1.  Not good.

What happens when we are out of balance with our 6’s and our 3’s?  Well….  This is what my research turns up:

The imbalance causes an inflammatory environment causing chronic conditions such as asthma, allergies, diabetes and arthritis.   As well as heart problems and depression.    That is not good.

****What may seem really bizarre is that many people who eat very healthily can be susceptible to these chronic diseases because they are out of balance.

What we have to remember is that Omega 6  is necessary and good ONLY if it is balanced with the omega 3.

So what foods have omega 6 and what foods have omega 3,  you ask?

Omega-6

Vegetable oils: grape seed, cottonseed, safflower, corn and sunflower oils.

Processed foods.  Most made with very cheap oils.

Grains

Meat

Dairy

As you can see many of these items are good for us.  And that is not the issue.  The issue is keeping all in balance.

Omega-3

Flax seed/oil

Cod liver oil and fish oil ( the label above is THE BEST you can buy.)

Walnuts

Beans (not all beans are rich in omega-3.  Some are more than others.

Fish

Olive, macadamia, avocado and coconut oils.

Grass fed meat and chickens.

Free range eggs

So while it is not necessary to refrain from the omega-6 rich foods, it is vital that you add more of the omega -3 rich foods with it.

How to balance:

Eat walnuts instead of almonds, every other time.  Don’t forget to soak and dry first both almonds and walnuts!  Almonds are very high in 6 while walnuts are high is 3.

Eat fish more often.

Take cod liver oil or fish oil. Fermented is the best kind and can be purchased online.  I buy a year supply at a time.

Switch oils. Remember oils come in many different forms.  Lots and lots of processed food uses oils.  Including anything that tries to look or act like butter.

DONT EAT PROCESSED FOODS!!!!!

Eat less grains and eat more beans.

Drizzle flaxseed oil on foods high in omega-6

Chronic diseases are ruling our culture and our health care.

Take great care of yourself!

God bless,

Karen

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