Omega 3's vs Flaxseed Oil - Alternative Medicine Message Board

glowing4 · 04-23-2009, 11:45 AM

Please forgive me if this has all be discussed before. I have been under a lot of stress this past year and have been reading about Omega 3's and flaxseed for anxiety and depression. So a few questions:

Can they be taken together?
Which is better?
How much of each or of one should be taken?
Does flaxseed oil have any estrogen properties or is it that
only in the seeds?
Have noticed prickling of the skin (sunburn type feel)
since starting flaxseed oil? Any connection or just
part of the stress?

One other question - Can Rescue Remedy be taken at any time or only when anxiety is at its highest? Can it be taken several times a day until anxiety gets better? Do the pastilles work as well as the tincture?

Thanks so much for your help,

glowing4

Shannatoo · 05-08-2009, 11:40 AM

Flaxseed oil contains high amounts of omega 3's so I'm not really sure what you are asking about (maybe fish oil?). If yes, one isn't any better than the other, it is just your preference. I personally take fish oil and try to eat 1-3 tablespoons of ground flax seeds daily. I really eat the flax for the lignans because I have some hormonal imbalance issues.

Flax oil with lignans have estrogenic effects (flax seeds do NOT contain any estrogen!). The lignans are called phytoestrogens because they have MILD and WEAK positive estrogenic effects in the body. Basically there are tons of things in our environment called xenoestrogens that bind to our estrogen receptors in the body and make us estrogen dominant (chemicals in shampoos, plastics, etc). The phytoestrogens in flax seeds bind to the same receptors, so that xenoestrogens cannot.

As far as rescue remedy, I have no idea. I have been taking GABA supplements every morning and they are proving to be very effective in helping my anxiety. It is safe to take every day and is safe to use long-term as well. GABA is an inhibitory neurotransmitter which means that is slows down the firing of the neurons (which is exactly what happens when we are anxious, our neurons are firing a little faster than comfortable!)

Good Luck!

hanson2 · 05-08-2009, 02:48 PM

I have to disagree a little bit that there is no difference between the Omega-3s in flax oil vs. that of fish oil. Fish oil contains EPA and DHA, two kinds of Omega-3s and flax oil contains ALA, the only essential Omega-3 fatty acid, meaning we need to get this from dietary sources. Flax oil is great, but it is even better to eat milled flax products because you receive the protein, fiber, and antioxidants from the seed that are not present in the flax oil. Either way, adding more Omega-3s to your diet can always help, from flax or fish. I find it easy to add milled flax to my oatmeal or yogurt in the morning and always add a dash of flax when I am baking.