On Wed, 28 Aug 2002 09:08:10 +0900, Tom <[log in to unmask]> wrote:

>.. in my experience
>vegetarians are easy to pick out of a crowd. Nervous, angry,
>emotionally unbalanced, intolerant.

I know a lot of vegetarians, they all are friendly, calm, relaxed,
easy to live with, great guys. Some are intolerant sometimes.
Only one signle man I know seems, as you tell,
emotionally unbalanced and intolerant.

I don't see any connection.

>Besides, I believe there
>is some evidence linking lifelong vegetarianism (children of
>strictly veg parents) to reduced intelligence.

So, shouldn't we be able to find any IQ examinating study with data on
nutrition lifestyle? Lets look after some IQ tests. And see.

Btw.: I do believe -of course- that low levels of DHA reduces the capacity
of the brain and eyes. Or course.
But I think the mammal capacity to synthesize DHA
is far enough. It's well described how it works, DHA is not essential. LNA
is essential.
My personal experience is: in my blood, 24 of a healthy range of 7 to 32.
I never ate any microgram of DHA or EPA in the last 15 years, yet is has a
high level.

There *is* a reason why brains could have low DHA-levels
(and this should be linked to some points of IQ).
And this are the enzyme suppressing conditions you all know....
tFA, excess insulin, alcohol, excess SFA, excess w6.

I think vegetarians are *more* suspect to be victims of excess w6.
It's (still is) fashion to use the "very healthy" safflor or sunflower oils
in the health scene and more amoung vegetarians.
Non fish-or-brain-eating meatarians are endangered too.
And vegans are endangered to suffer from tFA as they would tend to eat
margarine with toxic trans-fats.
Same for all *vores who eat potatoe chips.

I recall a discussion, some time ago. Now the puzzle stones are better.
Recall, Peter what you wrote?
> For example, Australian and British babies fed
>milk from omnivore mothers have about six percent DHA in the red blood
>cells.  American infants have about three percent.  British infants fed
>milk from vegetarian mothers have only two percent DHA in their cells.
( http://maelstrom.stjohns.edu/CGI/wa.exe?A2=ind9811&L=paleofood&P=R274 )

The studie's results:
         vegetarians    omnivores
British        2%           6%
American                    3%

Clearly british vegetarians' (weaned babies) have less DHA than the
omnivores. Ok so far.
But why are american omnivores nearly as low?
There must be some strange strong factor, which hit british vegetarians,
but which also hit american omnivores.

My tip: w-6 oil consumption.

>Herbivoures get their O-3 from the vast numbers of bugs they
>ingest along with their fodder, I suspect.

Herbivores get their o-3 from green plants. As LNA.
In fedder from sprayed fields there are no bugs.
If there were, there needed to be kilograms of grubs per day.
In the article of Loren Cordain (cause of the thread)
he assumes 100mg DHA to be required in pregnant or lactating humans.
(from reference nr 51). This would require 1.0 kg of lean muscle meat.
And for a cow? Is 1/3 of this sufficient? 30mg DHA.
300g pure bugs per day?

Self made DHA, with the "bad" conversion factor of "only" 1:20,
would require 0.6 g LNA for the 30mg DHA.
Guess how much grass you need to get 0.6g LNA?
Much less as a cow eats.

regards

Amadeus