On Tue, 23 May 2000, Justin Hasselman wrote:

> I'm confused with some of the Omega terminology.  So, as far as the
> anti-inflammatory ones, there's DHA, EPA, and Omega-3 EFAS.  If someone is
> supplementing with cod liver oil for DHA/EPA, then would eliminating flax
> oil be okay?  I've heard that Omega-3's are *essential* fatty acids... are
> they talking about DHA/EPA or Omega-3, or both?

EFA means "essential fatty acids," which means that they have to
be obtained from the diet.  The w-3 (omega 3) and w-6 fats are
both essential.

DHA and EPA are both w-3 fats; in fact, your body makes DHA from
EPA.  And it makes EPA from the ALA (alpha linolenic acid) in
flax oil.  It's considered better to get your w-3 in the form of
DHA or EPA because the conversion from ALA is already done, and
not all the ALA gets converted anyway.

Todd Moody
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