fish oil vs. flax(seed) oil

That's a good question. I was taking fish oil daily and then the pharmacist suggested Flax seed oil for my horrible dry eyes. I took it for a couple months until I ran out, and now I'm taking fish oil again. Maybe both would be okay?

Alternate them (according to my vets) -- they're digested differently.  Don't give cold-pressed flax to dogs (there's a chemical in the process they're sensitive to).  But whatever you do make it a GOOD quality.

A lot of the fish oil capsules (for both humans and dogs) are RANCID.  Break one open and see how it smells!  Dr D told me not to use dog ones at all because most of them are rancid (and you're putting a rotten thing/bacteria IN instead of trying to do something good!) and she warned me to be sure I was using a GOOD human one!! 

I hop all around -- including the fact that I give them sardines/oily fish a couple of times a week instead of the oil.  They're all digested differently and really do different stuff.

At least from a few things I've read about human use, I think they do different things (I take ground flax seed because it's supposed to help reduce cholesterol, but I don't know if flax seed oil does the same).  I've also read what Callie said, that you have to be sure it's of high quality.  I buy fish oil capsules from a local natural food store (the brand is Nordic Naturals). 

I've also heard that one or the other is good for your skin, as well as possibly helping with some hormone re-balancing, but I don't know if that's just hog-wash or what.  I've never heard the thing about helping dry eyes -- Cathy, did that help you?  In the past year, that has become a real big problem for me, to the point that I can't use the computer as much as I used to (one of the reasons I'm not on this forum in the evenings as much as I used to be).

tacran

I've never heard the thing about helping dry eyes -- Cathy, did that help you?  In the past year, that has become a real big problem for me, to the point that I can't use the computer as much as I used to (one of the reasons I'm not on this forum in the evenings as much as I used to be).

You know, I really think it did. It took awhile (a few weeks) before I noticed, but it definitely seemed better. After the pharmacist mentioned it, I asked my eye dr. and he said it was true. I've always had a problem with dry eyes, but I wear the Oaysis brand of contact lenses and they are wonderful with helping with that. It's when I take them out at night that my eyes are screaming at me. If I wake up in the middle of the night, I put eye drops in too. I do think the flax seed oil helped though. We bought it thru a health food store and it was pricier than the fish oil, but I think I'm going to order some more.

Callie, how can you tell if the fish oil capsules are rancid? And how do you keep them from turning rancid? 

If you're looking for omega 3's, fish oil is pretty much the way to go. The reason is the omega 3s in flaxseed oil are ALA (alpha-linolenic acid), which your body converts into DHA (docosahexaenoic acid) and EPA (eicosapentaenoic acid). The problem is we're not very efficient at converting it, so we end up only being able to use about 10% of what we take in. So if you eat a gram (1000 mg) of flaxseed oil, your body only ends up absorbing about 100 mg combined of EPA and DHA. Fish oil, on the other hand, is pre-converted (by the fish!) into EPA and DHA, so you can absorb almost all of it.

I take purified fish (it's a mixture of anchovy, sardine, and mackerel oils, I think) oil, in enteric coated capsules ("no fishy burps!" as the package says.. lol). Cherokee takes purified salmon oil, liquid in her food. She doesn't mind fishy burps.

That is really interesting about the flaxseed, I have been using it in the cancer diet / tumor diet for a couple of dogs and they are really thriving on the treat. But it is mixed with Organic Cottage Cheese. I would not give it by it's self. But it is one of the supplements I bake into the treat  bars. My vet is the vet for The Little Zoo That Could, ( you may have seen it on Animal Planet after evacuating all the animals for hurricanes) He is big on specific things.  Like home made formula for puppies , it MUST have egg yolk as this helps the deveolpment of the eye etc,

I also put Salmon in the Turkey treats.  Liver and Beef bars have golden or yukon potatos and regular turkey has sweet potato. We baked today and I sent a care package to an Irish Wolfhound undergoing radiation for a bizzare tumor in her mouth. When she refuses all other food my treat bars are begged for..

Bonita of Bwana

This is from WebMD - 

"Flaxseed is the best source of omega-3 fatty acids," says Lylas G. Mogk, MD, director of the Henry Ford Visual Rehabilitation and Research Center in Detroit, chairman of the Vision Rehabilitation Committee of the American Academy of Ophthalmology, and co-author of Macular Degeneration: TheComplete Guide to Saving and Maximizing Your Sight.

Flaxseed is also good for combating dry eyes, a very common problem, says Mogk, probably because of our poor omega-3 intake. "Dry eyes are usually the result of an insufficient outer oil layer in the tear film, so the water in the tears doesn't have anything to keep it from evaporating," she says. Omega-3 fatty acids help the oil glands produce the proper consistency of oil so it will flow from the oil glands and coat the surface of the eye.

Mogk recommends that her patients take a tablespoon a day of flaxseed oil. "I think all adults should do this," she says, "and most certainly those at high risk for macular degeneration (which includes those between the ages of 65 and 74, those who have a family member with the disease, women, and whites).

Cathy, thanks for posting that.  Very interesting!  I think I'll add some flax seed oil to my diet -- it sounds like it would be more effective for dry eyes than ground flax seeds themselves (which I put in my oatmeal and such).

My questions are for me and my dog.  Do the seeds need to be ground to get the benefits?  Or is the oil the best way to go?  What is the best fish oil?  Thanks for the info.