| Q&As: Ask the Nutritionist (Last updated: 16 Mar 2006) If you have a question on supplement, nutrition or training to ask, email to questions@ultimatesg.com |
| Q) Besides flaxseed and fish oil supplements, am I able to get my omega 3 from common food that can be purchased from the supermarkets? A) Those I have seen in the supermarkets are canola oil and walnut oil. Canola is about 7% Omega 3, soybean is about 7% (can vary due to genetic) and walnut is about 5%. Omega 3 is a very "fragile" fatty acids. Exposing them to cooking i.e. high heat will result in formation of endless free radicals. They turned rancid when "spoiled" is the reason why they are never a popular commodities for our food supply. You will need to take 4 tablespoons of soybean oil just to get 4g of omega 3 as opposed to in one table spoon of flaxseed oil you will be getting very close to twice of that. Although it is not in the scoop of this question, I will still like to point out that the conversion of plant omega 3 to the much more beneficial EPA and DHA is very ineffective. It made more sense to take pre-formed EPA and DHA and they should be pharmaceutical grade to minimise the risk of environmental contamination. Q) Where have you been? Why is there no Feb issue of this column? A) Thanks for being a regular reader for this column. I has been very busy with my projects, reading and examining the info in the book Paleo Diet for athletes last month and the early half of this month. I am glad that I finally have some free time to do this column again. Q) Are there any new discoveries for bodybuilding diet and supplementation? A) Yes there are quite a few. First is about acid and alkaline balance in the body. If you take a high protein diet which is necessary to maintain a positive nitrogen balance, if your diet does not contain enough alkaline-forming food, the body may be forced to excrete more protein in order to prevent metabolic acidosis. Secondly, I am interested to try out phosphotidyl-serine to see if it indeed exert a cortisol-reducing effect. If it does, it will work very well with DHA to be a very effective natural cortisol-blocker that will be of great value to bodybuilding purpose. Q) What are you taking now? A) Whey Matrix, Super Vitamin Pak, Max DHA, Buffered C and Glucosamine Sulphate. |