Dr. McKee's Health Matters » DHA http://www.dwightmckee.com Fri, 04 Dec 2009 14:54:56 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.6 en hourly 1 Mercury not a problem in fish oil products http://www.dwightmckee.com/2009/09/05/omega-3/what-the-news-reports-dont-tell-you-mercury-not-a-problem-in-fish-oil-products/ http://www.dwightmckee.com/2009/09/05/omega-3/what-the-news-reports-dont-tell-you-mercury-not-a-problem-in-fish-oil-products/#comments Sun, 06 Sep 2009 02:30:03 +0000 Dwight McKee http://www.dwightmckee.com/?p=35646 News reports are routinely talking about the problem of mercury in fish.

WASHINGTON – Mercury contamination was found in every fish tested at nearly 300 streams across the country in the most comprehensive look at the spread of the toxic element in streams and rivers.

All fish had traces of contamination, and about a quarter had mercury levels exceeding what the Environmental Protection Agency says is safe for people eating average amounts of fish.

Why do “they” never advise people to take fish oil (DHA and EPA) supplements? Seems like a no brainer to me….. Even without the extra purification step of molecular distillation (which should be used to remove PCBs, dioxins, and other fat soluble environmental contaminants to produce a high quality fish oil), the mercury stays in the fish protein. There is essentially no mercury in any (even low quality) fish oil products. Seems like this ought to be better known…..

All fish had traces of contamination, and about a quarter had mercury levels exceeding what the Environmental Protection Agency says is safe for people eating average amounts of fish.

]]> http://www.dwightmckee.com/2009/09/05/omega-3/what-the-news-reports-dont-tell-you-mercury-not-a-problem-in-fish-oil-products/feed/ 0 Omega-3 Kills Cancer Cells http://www.dwightmckee.com/2009/04/07/cancer/omega-3-kills-cancer-cells/ http://www.dwightmckee.com/2009/04/07/cancer/omega-3-kills-cancer-cells/#comments Wed, 08 Apr 2009 01:12:07 +0000 Dwight McKee http://www.dwightmckee.com/?p=19912 Medical News today reported the results of a study showing DHA’s role in reducing tumor size:

Docosahexanoic acid (DHA), an omega-3 fatty acid found in fish oils, has been shown to reduce the size of tumours and enhance the positive effects of the chemotherapy drug cisplatin, while limiting its harmful side effects.

Ever since a case report was published in the journal Nutrition and Cancer in 2005 in which an elderly man with a large and inoperable lung sarcoma went into complete remission with high dose fish oils, predominantly DHA, I’ve been emphasizing DHA (and vitamin D) in my nutritional recommendations for people facing cancer challenges.

In the case report, the intake of EPA+DHA was in the range of 15-18 grams per day, about the amount that the Innuit on their traditional diet of seal, fish, and whale blubber used to consume. That’s a lot of omega 3, and should be supervised by a nutritionally knowledgeable physician, but even 4-6 grams per day, especially with a high DHA product can be a big help.

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