Is flax oil a good source of Omega-3?
On paper, flax seed oil is the best source of plant / parent Omega-3 available. Many flax oils are over 50% by weight of Omega-3s, and they also have one of the best Omega-3 / Omega-6 ratios of all food sources. It seems like a no-brainer to use it as a super food and take half a teaspoon every day. So what’s the problem? The problem is that flax seed oil is one of the most unstable edible oils. Most polyunsaturated food oils are unstable and should be used with caution, as I explain in Grow Youthful. But flax seed oil can turn from super food to toxic with just half an hour of exposure to hot bright sunlight, or with hours or days of exposure to air, light or heat. Of course, you should never heat it in the kitchen I recently succumbed to temptation and bought a bottle of organic flax seed oil in the supermarket. A fresh and undamaged oil should have a delicious, nutty and slightly sweet flavour. However, this oil had a less pleasant “seed” rather than nut taste, and was more sour tha
