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Over 2000 years ago, Hippocrates recommended flax seed to his patients for their gastrointestinal problems. He probably didn't know that flax seed is full of the parent Omega-3 fat: alpha linolenic acid, and that Omega-3s are important to the health of every organ in the body -- but maybe he did since he was prescient in so many ways. Flax seed is more important than ever since a tablespoon or so of ground flax seed goes a long way in counteracting the large amounts of Omega-6s in Western diets. "Let thy food be thy medicine."

Fish Found to Protect People at Risk for Alzheimer's No link found between dementia symptoms and higher brain levels of mercury 2/5/2016By Craig weatherby The findings of a unique new study are fishy … in a good way. Many studies suggest that eating seafood helps protect against dementia. For example, see Dementia Danger Slashed by Brainy Marine Omega-3 and Mental Decline Slowed by Omega-3s. On the other hand, seafood is a source of mercury, which can damage the brain, indirectly. Mercury binds to selenium … an essential part of internal antioxidants that protect the brain from free radicals. This explains why people who consume more mercury than selenium can suffer brain damage that harms thinking and memory (so-called cognitive impairment). And it likely explains why adults and children who eat far more fish than most Americans do very well on developmental and academic tests. For more on this topic, see Benefits of Fish to Kids Found to Outweigh Risks,  Most Fish Rank as Very Safe on New, Selenium-Based Standard, Feds Advise Kids and Pregnant Women to Eat More Fish, FDA Analysis Supports More Fish for Moms and Kids, and other articles in the Mercury Issues section of our news archive. Now, a study from Chicago’s Rush University Medical Center – published in theJournal of the American Medical Association – reinforces the brain benefits of seafood. Brain study is first of its kind The new study is the first to compare both seafood consumption and brain levels of mercury to the risk for Alzheimer’s disease and the presence of its physical signs in the brain (Morris MC et al. 2015). The researchers recruited 544 older people who were free of dementia at the outset of the study, and followed them for an average of 4.5 years. Participants' seafood intake was measured by multiple questionnaires completed in the years before their death. The amounts of seafood reported by the participants ranged from low to moderate, and consisted mostly of the top 10 species consumed in the U.S. (including salmon and tuna), which have low to moderate levels of mercury. The researchers performed brain autopsies on 286 people who died during the course of the study. They measured the levels of mercury and selenium, and for abnormalities characteristic of Alzheimer’s disease. As study leader Martha Clare Morris, ScD, said, "Since mercury is a known neurotoxin, we wanted to determine whether brain mercury levels are correlated with brain neuropathologies.” Fish-rich diets linked to lower dementia risk The results of the brain autopsies fit with previous studies linking seafood-rich diets to reduced dementia risk. The results of the autopsies linked higher seafood consumption to lower risk for Alzheimer's disease ... despite increased mercury levels. The autopsies also linked higher seafood intakes to lower risk for two signs associated with Alzheimer’s disease: amyloid "plaque” and brain-cell "tangles”. It's important to note that the relatively large number of brains analyzed lowered the likelihood that the findings were due to chance. Few participants took fish oil routinely, so the researchers couldn’t draw any clear conclusions about its possible value for preventing dementia. Benefits limited to high-risk participants The study results only found brain benefits in certain people. Fewer signs of Alzheimer's were seen only in the brains of those who met two criteria: Ate more seafood than most of the study participants. Had a specific variation in an Alzheimer's related gene called APOE.  That gene variation – called APOE4 – raises the risk of Alzheimer's disease very substantially. What do the results mean? Diets rich in seafood don't guarantee you won't get Alzheimer's or other, less common forms of dementia. But there's now ample evidence that it's smart to eat plenty of seafood, and take omega-3 fish oil as insurance. Enjoying seafood two or more times a week may delay the onset of dementia, and/or reduce the severity of its symptoms. And the available evidence suggests that you can do even better by getting plenty of exercise and filling your plate with antioxidant-rich plant foods. Your best choices are colorful fruits and vegetables, extra virgin olive oil, green tea, extra-dark chocolate, and natural (non-alkalized) cocoa. For more on that topic, see Colorful Greens and Veggies Keep Minds Sharp, Cocoa’s Antioxidants Reversed Seniors’ Memory Decline, Blueberries Score in Two Brain-Health Trials, and other articles in the Foods & Brain Health section of our news archive. Sources Beydoun MA, Kaufman JS, Satia JA, Rosamond W, Folsom AR. Plasma n-3 fatty acids and the risk of cognitive decline in older adults: the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities Study. Am J Clin Nutr. 2007 Apr;85(4):1103-11. Björnberg KA, Vahter M, Grawé KP, Berglund M. Methyl mercury exposure in Swedish women with high fish consumption. Sci Total Environ. 2005 Apr 1;341(1-3):45-52. Connor WE, Connor SL. The importance of fish and docosahexaenoic acid in Alzheimer disease. Am J Clin Nutr. 2007 Apr;85(4):929-30.  Dangour AD, Allen E, Elbourne D, Fasey N, Fletcher AE, Hardy P, Holder GE, Knight R, Letley L, Richards M, Uauy R. Effect of 2-y n-3 long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acid supplementation on cognitive function in older people: a randomized, double-blind, controlled trial. Am J Clin Nutr. 2010 Jun;91(6):1725-32. doi: 10.3945/ajcn.2009.29121. Epub 2010 Apr 21. Karimi R, Silbernagel S, Fisher NS, Meliker JR. Elevated blood Hg at recommended seafood consumption rates in adult seafood consumers. Int J Hyg Environ Health. 2014 Sep;217(7):758-64. doi: 10.1016/j.ijheh.2014.03.007. Epub 2014 Apr 6. Morris MC, Brockman J, Schneider JA, Wang Y, Bennett DA, Tangney CC, van de Rest O. Association of Seafood Consumption, Brain Mercury Level, and APOE ε4 Status With Brain Neuropathology in Older Adults. JAMA. 2016 Feb 2;315(5):489-97. doi: 10.1001/jama.2015.19451. Morris MC, Evans DA, Bienias JL, Tangney CC, Bennett DA, Wilson RS, Aggarwal N, Schneider J. Consumption of fish and n-3 fatty acids and risk of incident Alzheimer disease. Arch Neurol. 2003 Jul;60(7):940-6. Morris MC, Evans DA, Tangney CC, Bienias JL, Wilson RS. Fish consumption and cognitive decline with age in a large community study. Arch Neurol. 2005 Dec;62(12):1849-53. Epub 2005 Oct 10. Nielsen SJ, Aoki Y, Kit BK, Ogden CL. More than half of US youth consume seafood and most have blood mercury concentrations below the EPA reference level, 2009-2012. J Nutr. 2015 Feb;145(2):322-7. doi: 10.3945/jn.114.203786. Epub 2014 Dec 17. Nielsen SJ, Kit BK, Aoki Y, Ogden CL. Seafood consumption and blood mercury concentrations in adults aged ≥20 y, 2007-2010. Am J Clin Nutr. 2014 May;99(5):1066-70. doi: 10.3945/ajcn.113.077081. Epub 2014 Feb 12. Schaefer EJ, Bongard V, Beiser AS, Lamon-Fava S, Robins SJ, Au R, Tucker KL, Kyle DJ, Wilson PW, Wolf PA. Plasma phosphatidylcholine docosahexaenoic Acid content and risk of dementia and Alzheimer disease: the framingham heart study. Arch Neurol. 2006 Nov;63(11):1545-50. van Gelder BM, Tijhuis M, Kalmijn S, Kromhout D. Fish consumption, n-3 fatty acids, and subsequent 5-y cognitive decline in elderly men: the Zutphen Elderly Study. Am J Clin Nutr. 2007 Apr;85(4):1142-7.

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FYI, the Whole Foods Markets in Jericho, NY; Madison and Morristown, NJ are now carrying Susie's Smart Breakfast Cookies. Please shop for them there. Cheers, Susie

The Taste of New York store in Grand Central is now carrying Susie's Smart Breakfast Cookies. Thank you Frank! Please shop for them there. http://www.taste.ny.gov/store/grand-central-station

I'm glad to see that a prominent panel is recommending that US women be screened for postpartum depression. Pregnancy takes a great deal out of women, as everyone knows, including her supply of Omega-3s, which help to protect the brain against depression and many other conditions. Please read Web MDs report on the well-documented  connection between Omega-3s and postpartum depression and remember that Susie's Smart Breakfast Cookies are a great way to boost your tissue Omega-3s.

 

Omega-3s May Cut Risk of Postpartum Depression
Study Shows Eating Fatty Fish May Be Helpful in Preventing Symptoms of Postpartum Depression
By Denise Mann
WebMD Health News Reviewed by Laura J. Martin, MD
WebMD News Archive
April 11, 2011 -- Eating fatty fish or other foods rich in healthy omega-3 fatty acids during pregnancy may help lower your risk of developing symptoms commonly seen in postpartum depression, a small study suggests.

The findings are slated for presentation at the Experimental Biology 2011 meeting in Washington, D.C.

Many new mothers experience the “baby blues” in the first few weeks after delivery. Symptoms of the baby blues, such as mood swings, insomnia, and feeling overwhelmed, are generally not long-lasting.

Postpartum depression is a more serious illness. It has moderate to severe depression symptoms such as sadness and hopelessness, severe mood swings, confusion, guilt, sleeping and eating disturbances, and sometimes thoughts of suicide.

There is a wealth of research linking omega-3 fatty acids such as those found in salmon and other oily fish to improved cardiovascular health. Omega-3 fatty acids are important to the development of a fetus’s neurologic development and growth. In fact, some prenatal vitamins contain omega-3 fatty acids including docosahexaenoic acid (DHA).

In the new study, 52 pregnant women took either a corn oil placebo pill or a fish oil capsule containing 300 milligrams of DHA for five days a week during the 24th to 40th weeks of their pregnancy. The amount of DHA contained in each capsule is the equivalent of about one-half serving of salmon.

The researchers used a postpartum depression screening scale to determine if the women were showing any signs or symptoms of postpartum depression two weeks, six weeks, three months, and six months after delivery.

Women who received the fish oil supplements scored lower on the scale and had significantly fewer postpartum depression symptoms than those who received the placebo. Women in the fish oil group were also less likely to report anxiety symptoms, the study shows.

But the study was too small to draw any sweeping conclusions about fish oil and risk for postpartum depression.

"DHA consumption during pregnancy -- at levels that are reasonably attained from foods -- has the potential to decrease symptoms of postpartum depression," conclude study researchers led by Michelle Price Judge, PhD, RD, a faculty member at the University of Connecticut School of Nursing.

Happy New Year -- and I hope some of caught the PBS version of Michael Pollan's In Defense of Food which aired on December 30th. The participants in the film were asked to contribute recipes that support Michael's maxim "Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants" so I gave them my recipe for pressure-cooker risotto. Here it is -- as on http://www.pbs.org/food/ 

"Ever since I learned that one can make risotto in the pressure cooker -- in just 7 minutes, this has been my favorite go-to recipe for a quick, luxurious meal. It can be varied endlessly, depending on what vegetables or mushrooms are handy and never fails to impress. I make a high Omega-3 version of risotto, of course, by using either canola oil to saute the rice or by adding a tablespoon of golden flaxseed meal at the end (at the same time as the parmesan and cream). Both methods produce a creamy,delicious risotto with a healthy balance of essential fats. You'll be lucky to have any leftovers." - Susan Allport

This recipe appears on courtesy of Susan Allport, author of The Queen of Fats: Why Omega-3s were removed from the Western Diet and what we can do to replace them (University of California Press, 2006).

I went to my first movie premiere last month: a film treatment of Michael Pollan's In Defense of Food, in which I had a small cameo. I spoke, of course, about Omega-3s and their competition with Omega-6s for positions in cell membranes. The book -- and film -- acknowledge the importance of Omega-3s but spend more time on the lowest hanging "fruit" in America's troublesome diet: the tremendous amount of extra sugars and calories in the form of soft drinks and overly-sweetened processed foods. I couldn't agree more. Soft drinks should be the first thing to go in any household's diet. That, indeed, is the lowest hanging fruit and the first and most important step towards a healthier future.

But even after all the soft drinks and overly-processed foods are eliminated, individuals can still experience problems with weight, heart disease, diabetes, cancers, and many other illnesses -- depending -- in no small part -- on the oils and fats they choose to use. Corn, peanut, sunflower, safflower, cottonseed and grape oil are all so high in Omega-6s that they promote an Omega-3 deficiency, which is linked -- by well-defined causal mechanisms -- to all these conditions. Canola oil and butter (especially grass-fed butter) have a good balance of Omega-3s and Omega-6s and promote optimal levels of Omega-3s -- and overall health. Olive oil is great in the context of the Mediterranean diet (lots of greens and fish) but if you're eating more of a Western diet, mix it with canola to give yourself some added Omega-3s. (See my websites; www.susanallport.com and  www.susiesmartcookie.com for more tips on adding Omega-3s to your diet).  

See In Defense of Food on PBS on December 30th and let me know what you think. It features Maira Kalman's very whimsical illustrations.     

While making the gravy this Thanksgiving, I was inspired to add flax meal, as well as flour, to the pan of drippings (as well, of course, salt and pepper). This made a great gravy and helped to balance the Omega-3s and Omega-6s in our holiday meal. I used about 3 Tablespoons of flour and 1 Tablespoon of Flax meal to one pan of drippings.

In a pinch the other day, Michele put her favorite chocolate sauce on a Gingered Apple Breakfast Cookie and served it for dessert. It was a big hit -- so we started thinking of all the ways that one can use the Breakfast Cookies -- at times other than breakfast. Here, the Cocoa Breakfast Cookie is crumbled and toasted and served over lemon ice cream with raspberries. One Breakfast Cookie will serve 4-6 in this way. Other suggestions will follow (including the recipe for the chocolate sauce), and we'd love to hear about any ideas that you come up with. Salut.

Pasture-raised pork has higher levels of Omega-3s (and lower Omega-6s) than conventional pork and translates into a happier lifestyle for the pig. But it's not always economical -- or easy to find. I found myself with a conventional pork loin recently and boosted its Omega-3s by stuffing it with a combination of chopped sage leaves and garlic; breadcrumbs; flaxseed meal; and canola oil -- with salt and pepper to taste -- and rolling it in canola oil, salt and pepper before roasting. Delicious and with a healthy balance of Omega-3s and Omega-6s in every bite!

 

 

                     

 

 

  Ten Tips for Holding on to your Omega-3s while Eating out at Restaurants

                           (without having to interrogate the waiter!)

 

 

1.  Choose a restaurant in which Omega-3s have traditionally played a strong role: Japanese, Scandinavian, Greek and other Mediterranean restaurants, as well as any fish restaurant and restaurants that specialize in pasture-fed meats. This is more than half the battle in eating out. With so many healthy, high Omega-3 options on the menu, all you have to do is restrain from ordering the fried foods.         

2.   

   Avoid the fried foods in any restaurant (unless you know they fry in canola oil or this is a very rare, or special, occasion) and order broiled, grilled or baked meats and fishes.

 

3. 

    Start, or end, your meal with a simple salad as most Mediterranean people do.

 

4.  

   Dress that salad with olive oil and vinegar you mix at the table (unless you are in a very fine restaurant where the dressings are light). This is a great way to avoid the heavy dressings that many restaurants serve. It’s also a great way to make sure the olive oil is fresh. Taste a little bit of the oil before you make your dressing and ask the waiter to replace it if it has gone rancid. (Be suspect of any bottle of olive oil that is sitting out in the sun or in the window.)

 

5.  Eat bread without butter as most Europeans do. This is more of a weight tip than an Omega-3 tip; in Europe, butter is only eaten with bread at breakfast. One has the whole day to burn off those calories.

 

6.  Look for Indian restaurants that cook with canola oil since many Indian restaurants put this on their menus. Canola oil (also known as rapeseed oil) is as traditional in Indian cooking as ghee or clarified butter. What isn’t traditional and what causes Indian food to be extremely heavy (and promote weight gain) is sunflower and safflower oils, two inexpensive oils that are full of omega-6s.

 

7.  Pay attention to how you feel after a restaurant meal. If you feel sluggish and heavy, avoid that restaurant in the future. If you feel light (though satiated) and alert, frequent it more often.

 

8.  If you eat out often for breakfast, bring a bottle of ground flax seed so you can add flax seed meal to your oatmeal or yogurt.

 

9.  Encourage those restaurants you frequent often, to switch to canola oil for most of their cooking and to provide ground flax seed to their customers.

10.  Choose fresh fruit or cheese to end your meal and take a pass on prepared desserts. Berries are full of Omega-3s and many fine cheeses are made from the milk of animals that have been raised on grass (think Omega-3s) rather than grains (think Omega-6s).