Posted by Darwin on March 30, 2003, at 15:41:33
In reply to Re: Omega-3 Omega-6 induced hypomania, posted by djmmm on March 29, 2003, at 11:04:58
> Thanks Darwin, and everyone else who responded...
>
> Darwin, the product Im taking is called "Flax Oil" Xtra, by a reputable supplement company.
>
> If you are interested, I've listed the ingredients:
>
> Flax Oil (seed) 1g. (1,000mg)
> Alpha-Linolenic Acid (Omega-3) 530mg
>
> Evening Primrose Oil (seed) 950mg
> Gammma-Linolenic Acid (omega-6) 86mg
>
> Borage Oil (seed) 50mg.
> Gammma-Linolenic Acid (Omega-6) 10mg
>
> Vitamin E (d-alpha tocopherol) 30 IUWell, the product you are taking does not contain any EPA or DHA which is usually provided by fish oil. EPA and DHA are generally considered the preferred forms of Omega-3. The body can convert only a small percentage of the ALA in Flax Seed Oil to EPA. As Ed O`Flaherty mentioned, Dr. Stoll prefers fish oil over flax seed oil in treating bipolars because he believes that flax seed oil is more likely to cause manic episodes than fish oil. So, if you are concerned about the hypomania you experienced, you may want to try fish oil in place of "Flax Oil Xtra" which hopefully would provide a mild antidepressant effect without causing hypomania.
I find it fascinating that one dose of "Flax Seed Xtra" would throw you into hypomania. I wonder how much of the effect is due to the added GLA. I suspect that the flax seed oil alone would have the same effect but maybe not.
Actually the hypomania you described sounds wonderful to me. If it were not for the hard crash which sometimes follows, I would love to experience it.
Hope you land softly from your hypomania. Let us know how you are doing.
Darwin
poster:Darwin
thread:213931
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20030329/msgs/214487.html