Hi Lance,

On Mon, 10 Mar 2003 10:17:15 -0500, Lance H <[log in to unmask]> wrote:

 >There's a lot of w6:w3 ratio recommendations scattered around the web,
 >ranging from 1:1 to 10:1.

Yeah, so which recommendation is right? Plus, people differ, due to many
factors, so the ideal w6:w3 ratio varies per individual.

 >Erasmus himself recommends 2:1, according to
http://www.curezone.com/foods/fatspercent.asp.

In his book, he says that a healthy ratio is anywhere between 6:1 to
2:1. Also, in his book, he states that the optimum fat intake is about
15-20% of one's daily calories (of the proper kinds, of course).

 >If the ratio of 1:1 is correct, then it is ONLY flaxseed which makes it
 >possible to attain the ratio on plant-foods alone.  It is arguably THE
 >crucial ingredient in the success of raw vegan diets (aside from B12).

Where do you get most of your omega-3's from? And what's the ratio of
w6:w3 in your diet? How many people, regardless of the diet consumed,
can get a 1:1 ratio without including flax in the diet? What would they
eat in order to do so -- exclusively wild plants and/or fish, animal
brains, etc.? (Eating lots of fish could be a potent source of
environmental toxins, BTW). Needless to say, such a diet is not possible
or desirable for most people.

The highest known source of omega-3 is flax seeds, containing about 35%
fat, 58% of which is omega-3. And (organically grown) flax is the
cleanest source of it (no contaminating mercury, pcb's, dioxins, etc.).
And also probably the cheapest (for the seeds -- not talking about the
fractionated bottled oils). Do you recommend that people eat raw animal
brains for their omega-3's? I question the desirability, safety, and
accessibility of that.

 >In that case, your diet is successful because your flaxseed is such a
 >high proportion of your concentrated fat, and because your conc fat
 >intake as a whole is pretty low.

My diet isn't successful because of one food, it's only better aided by
the flax (going by experience/results, not theory).

 >Well, the success or failure of your diet seems to me to rest on a single
 >plant.

I'd like to know how you can draw such a conclusion. I am probably
taking in far more omega-3 than most people are that don't consume flax,
regardless of what diet I compare mine to.

BTW, hypothetically speaking, the need for the flax is probably due to
cultivated fruits and plants being so much lower in omega-3's than their
wild counterparts. If it weren't for that, something like flax probably
wouldn't be necessary.

 >That's what I mean by "heavy reliance".  In contrast, there are
 >wild animals in just about every part of the world which could serve as an
 >adequate animal substitute.  I didn't say it was impossible to thrive on
 >a raw vegetarian diet, merely difficult.

Even if consuming wild animals, one would probably need to eat the
brains in order to take in a high amount of omega-3. For 99% of people,
that is neither possible or desirable. Speaking of 99%, I've read that
99% of people are taking in sub-optimal levels of omega-3's, probably
because most people aren't eating mostly or exclusively wild plant
and/or animal foods. Also, omega-3's are extremely sensitive to light,
heat, and air, so in order to get the proper benefit from them, the food
needs to be consumed fresh & raw.

 >To get as much w3 from (say) lettuce as from flaxseed, one would need
to eat
 >approx 500-1500 times as much by weight.  So 2 oz flax equates to approx
 >60-180 lb of lettuce, enough to have a laxative effect on anyone.  Maybe
 >gorillas and horses can get enough w3 from green leaves, but not us.
 >And our need is relatively greater because our w3-rich brains are bigger.

According to Udo Erasmus, in "Fats That Heal, Fats That Kill", page 178,
the optimum amount of omega-3 in the diet is 2% of one's daily calories.
The amount needed for survival is even less than that. If one consumes
2,500 calories, then the optimum amount of omega-3, according to
Erasmus, is 50 calories, or about 6 grams.

 >I agree and I eat a large salad every day which takes me an hour to
chew my
 >way through.  But I don't regard it as a significant source of w3.

According to Erasmus, 60-70% of the oil in leafy greens is omega-3. The
total oil content varies per type of vegetable. If one eats a lot of
greens, it can end up being a significant source of omega-3.

 >Yeah, perhaps.  A bad batch, perhaps.  I only tried them 4 times.  But
I've
 >rarely had a headache from anything else ...

It's unknown if you were experiencing intox, or if it was a detox
reaction triggered by the nutrients in the flax seeds.

Regards,

Wes