a draft
there’s a deep sculpted cutting
in the train’s terrain
brick stone tunnel rough
rick racket dark
and the smell of the diesel stinks
jostling over the bridge
to the edge
to the edge of a beginning
then the night wriggles through the long carriage
no curtains on the windows to hid the dawn
we’ve come so far to get behind
to get behind to get behind
ahh
I don’t know where we’re going
she sat at the edge of the carriage
I thought she smiled
and I thought I’ll remember this
as nostalgia
click on the pigeon to home
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Fish Oil, Plant Omega 3s, and Cardiovascular Health
The is some evidence that fish “omega 3”oils are beneficial to cardiovascular health. Less evidence that plant source “omega 3” has the same value. (Note: there are three types of “omega 3” or “n-3 fatty acids”: two from fish – eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) – and one from plant sources – α-linolenic acid (ALA) found in walnuts, flax seeds and chia seeds.
Is there more (though controversial) evidence for fish (EPA and DHA) than for plant ALA because there’s been more research? Probably. Wikipedia says, “The 18 carbon [ALA] has not been shown to have the same cardiovascular benefits as DHA or EPA.” Note, they say “has not been shown to,“ and not “has been shown not to.”
One of the studies I’ve found on-line found that an experimental walnut diet lowered total cholesterol and LDL cholesterol concentrations, while a fish diet resulted in decreased serum triglyceride and increased HDL-cholesterol concentrations. So both are valuable and may complement each other. (Though another author says that there is no data on the potential therapeutic benefit of EPA, DHA, or ALA supplementation on those individuals who already consume a vegetarian diet.)
So, there just hasn’t been that much research and so many authors are hedging there bets: “Observational data suggest that diets rich in EPA, DHA, or ALA do reduce cardiovascular events, including myocardial infarction and sudden cardiac death; however, randomized controlled trial data are somewhat less clear;” and ”…The evidence [for plant sources, alpha-linolenic acid] is not as compelling as for fish oil.”
I’m a cardiac patient, and I’m a vegetarian, and for now I’m just eating a lot of flax (freshly ground), chia, and walnuts.
click on the pigeon to home
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There was work done in the 70s, 80s that showed that fish oils improved arterial health.
I’m a vegetarian, for many reasons. I want to avoid fish oils… but my arteries are quite clogged. What about flax, what about walnuts, what about chia? Are they known not to work? (these are the vegetable omega 3s) or is it that they just haven’t been studied?
I’m going to research this. Do you know the answer?
click on the pigeon to home
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there are several new paintings posted
dancer at rest 16″ x 20″
click on the pigeon to home
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new road kill
the joys and pain we take
from this kaleidoscope
are thin as gruel
thick as blood
there is a nightmare
on this beautiful glen road
wooded through the heart of the city
on this Friday night’s drive home
two small orange figures on the road ahead
a fox visiting the corpse of its mate
I squeeze my brakes
the survivor scarpers to the roadside
brakes squeal behind me a moment
being near tears
I feel like a fraud
posing in my grief
this emptiness rends
so hush now
can you stop thinking while you breathe
qualify kaleidoscope
fragments
only fragments
click on the pigeon to home
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