Hi there

So Ive been experimenting with diet and oils and found this works better on my system....can anyone tell me what they think of this?

i eat all my food in two big meals....breakfast and lunch. Im finding the food is digesting way better because im actually hungry when i eat. Also, because my meals are bigger, when i supplement with the oils,I dont feel that queezy feeling i felt before.

I spoke with my doc of the zone diet. He agrees its brilliant, but says because of m genetics i have to alter it a bit. He was okay with me eating two larger meals instead of 6 meals. He said though thats i must make sure i still fill up on zone recommended foods. however, he recommended and omega 3:6:9 blend of oils from plant spurces (ie flax, pumpkin,sesame, sunflower and evening primrose) for me. The ratio is 2:1:1 for omegas 3:6:9....so its the closest to the zone as possible. He also put me on a product called nim for my acne, but insists the gla content in the oils will sort this i n a few weeks.

This doctor is a homeopathic endocrynologist, who does yoga..... .....; and said that due to my lifestyle where im constantly teaching and practicing yoga, 2 meals would probably be better for my digestive system.
however, thats fine onl now, because ive managed to keep my insulin under control. he said in about 3-4 weeks i must try have a third light meal in the evening.

this is what i used to do before i ever read about any diets, and it worked for me then.

what is your opinion on the oils though?

"what is your opinion on the oils though?"

The omega 6's will add to inflammation levels, and, given a little time, the GLA will also push you in a negative direction (read in Zone books about the spillover effect). You'll be much better off following Barry Sears' omega 3 supplementation and dietary fat recommendations.

but do you agree that it differs with everyones bodies/daily activities etc?
and hormones, ofcourse?

What will differ between individuals is the rate at which inflammation increases and the amount of time until the spillover effect begins from too much GLA, but both will be taking place.

So much for AutoShip being easy to cancel and requiring a phone call! As I stated earlier, one should be able to cancel via the website. I ordered the free offer of Omega Rx capsules, paying for shipping. They put it on AutoShip. Immediately, I canceled Autoship by phone, supposedly. Here it is, a month later and a charge shows up for nearly $48 for one bottle of 120 capsules of Omega-Rx, along with receiving the bottle in the mail today. SO, again I had to call. They did, fortunately, have the record of my calling to cancel. I told them I was not paying the return postage, either. So, they are (supposedly) reversing the charge, and let me keep the one bottle. I guess the product of one bottle is worth the hassle. BUT, as it was stated by another person, that even though you can cancel autoship by of one, its easy. Not so. Cancelling via the same ordering website would be easy.
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Besides.I'd rather pay $16 + $4 shipping for Natural Factors Omega-3 from iHerb then pay $40 + $8 shipping for one of R. Sears, and that's the AutoShip price - that I canceled and they still shipped.

So much for AutoShip being easy to cancel and requiring a phone call!
I stated in another posting, somewhere that one should be able to cancel via the website. I ordered the free offer of Omega Rx capsules, paying for shipping. They (not me) decided to put it on AutoShip. Fortunately, I caught it, I thought! So I imediately called to cancel their mistake of putting it on AutoShip.
And here it is, a month later and a charge shows up for nearly $48 for one bottle of 120 capsules of Omega-Rx, along with receiving a bottle in the mail today.
SO, again I had to call. They did, fortunately, have the record of my calling to cancel. I told them I was not paying the return postage, either. So, they said ( they are supposedly) reversing the charge, and they let me keep the one bottle.
I guess the product of one bottle is worth the hassle that one must go through. And this to cancel an AutoShip that I did not place, just for taking them up on their free offer.
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It was stated by another person, that "even though you must cancel autoship by phone, its easy." Not so!, apparently. Canceling via the same ordering website would be easy. Or, how about not putting some one on AutoShip to begin with when they take advantage of their free trial offer.
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Besides, I'd rather pay $16 + $4 shipping for Natural Factors Omega-3 from iHerb then pay $40 + $8 shipping for one of Dr. Sears, and that's their AutoShip price (which I canceled and they still shipped).

John,

Dare I even suggest my theory on why they do it the way that they do?

It is easy to place an order online. They obviously dangle the autoship discount in front of prospective customers, enticing them to take the discount, which almost certainly secures more purchases. Those of us who have intentions on only ordering one shipment are not always diligent enough to make the call to cancel the upcoming shipment. We may THINK we will get around to it, but I bet there are thousands of customers that are continuing to receive shipments that they had planned on canceling, but for some reason, didn't get it done.

But, if it were easy to cancel, then just think of the sales that are lost on those of us who selected "autoship" and then went right back and canceled the autoship, just to get the discount.

Since you brought up the differences in price and shipping, I am curious. How does the shipment differ, from one product to another? Distance? Packaging?

I am not sure where iHerb ships from; But I do know it is further away than North Shore of MA where the ZONE (not SZ) products come from. ZONE: Marblehead, MA to Nashua, NH via USPS. iHerb uses either USPS or UPS, and I can not recall where from, might even be CA!
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Packaging? ZONE uses a paper envelope and nothing else (for this product). iHerb uses foam peanuts and a cardboard box. So on both counts iHerb is cheaper shipping cost with more packaging. Zone uses cheaper packaging, is closer, and charges more to ship.

John, so you are practically neighbors with Zone Labs, but it still costs you $8 for shipping the fish oil. I wonder why the shipping is so high? Even if we assumed that iHerbs was shipping from the same distance, that is still a substantial difference.

Actual costs: AutoShip cost for ONE Dr.Sears Omega-3 RX, 120 capsules = $40.76.
Shipping (& handling?) = $6.95
Total = $47.71
hassle to cancel = worth less.
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Natural Factors via iHerb = $16.00
Shipping = $4.00
Total = $20.00
hassle free = Price less!

LOL!

I found a surprise on my doorstep, my shipment arrived! The fish oil is already on an autoship, and ?? no shipping fee on the invoice. I think I recall that if the purchase is over $50, then maybe the shipping is waived? Anyway, I missed the boat on canceling, so I will be using up this batch and then will have to set up NF.

I also got the Superzone food, the product order was $34, and shipping was $12.38. Ouch, that is almost 1/3 of the cost of the food!

I thought everyone might be interested in this. I started out on Zone Omega Rx. Great results with my torn rotator cuff pain going away for the most part. Because of the expense, I ordered this fish oil from Vitacost with low shipping. It is Mega EFA and it is: Serving size 2 softgels. Purified fish oil (molecularly distilled) 2126 mg.
EPA, 800 mg. DHA, 400 mg. This is the same as Dr. Sears with the only difference being that his serving is 4 capsules, which if you double mine to 4 caps would equal Dr. Sears potency. Cost is $21.99 for 240 capsules, so it is still cheaper.

Anyay, went off of the OmegaRx and tried these, but my shoulder pain came back, so I ordered some more of Dr. Sears Omega Rx.

Back on Sears Omega Rx this month and pain is again gone, so I really am a believer in the product. Anyway, I found a website that sells it for $38.99 and for FREE SHIPPING! I don't know if I can mention it here, but would be happy to give the link to anyone that wants it. It is worth it to me to continue as long as I can get the product from this other website at the reduced cost.

Interesting, Mari. Can you give me the link? Any reduction is better than what it is now. You can send it to me if you don't think you can post it, my email is cranberrycat@hotmail.com.

Just chiming in to support Cat's theory.

A while back I took advantage of one of the Fish Oil and Polyphenol deals...My order was put on AutoShip right away (why pay more, right?)

Well...6 shipments later, I finally remembered to call and cancel! My bank account thanks me. I had originally been considering the MegaRed Krill Oil supplements, but I don't think those are ending up Zone Friendly...Although I haven't finished looking at them yet either...

I am thinking I will end up just ordering the Natural Factors from iHerb

I'm happy for you Mari, that you've been able to find a way to eliminate you pain. That's great! :-)

I'm not at all surprised by your experience. I had tried 3 other fish oils prior to Omega Rx, in an attempt to lower the high blood pressure I'd had for many years, but none worked. At that time, I was on 2 prescription high BP meds simultaneously, that weren't even bringing my high BP down to a high normal range, and my docs(PCP and Cardiologist) had tried just about every type of BP med on my, in various combinations. About 9 years ago I switched to Omega Rx and my BP went down into the normal range in less than a week. My doc immediately took me off 1 of my high BP meds, and weaned me off the other one over the next 2 weeks. My BP's been fantastic even since, averaging around107/68. I wouldn't even consider trying another brand of fish oil.

Thanks, Jennifer!

Cran, sent you the link!

Sue, I would have never believed it if I had not tried the experiment for myself, and that's only taking 4 caps. It really did work for me. I am anxious to have my triglyceride check in March to see if there is an improvement, which is my original reason for re-starting the Zone diet. The shoulders are a definite added benefit. I told my ortho doc a few months ago that I would need to come in for another injection, and after starting the fish oil, the pain went away. After switching to the other brand, the pain was back full force, so ordered more of the Omega Rx. After being back on it a week, pain was once again mysteriously gone. I honestly would have never believed if I hadn't tried it for myself!

My only concern is the high dose of oil and thinning blood? I have read that soldiers in harms way are not allowed to supplement with fish oil in case of injury and the need for possible surgery. I am going to discuss this with the surgeons where I work and their opinion on this. I guess in the event of surgery they would just discontinue it for a period of time, same as any other blood thinner.

Thanks, Mari. Got the link!

I don't think it is a problem with planned surgery.

Hi Mari,

Dr. Sears addresses fish oil and surgery in his books, basically saying it is not of concern, and then explaining why. Even so, doctors will have you stop it along with aspirin and herbal supplements, usually 10 day to 2 weeks prior to a surgical procedure involving anesthesia. I've had numerous major surgeries, one of them with only two days notice, another with no prior notice, meaning I obviously didn't have the luxury of enough time to stop fish oil prior to either of these. I had no bleeding problems. I've had numerous minor surgical procedures while taking fish oil without stopping it, and likewise, haven't had any bleeding problems.

Sue, I didn't realize you were taking high dose fish oil? Didn't you say that you only take a small amount every other day, or so? I don't think that this small amount will make a difference when faced with surgery. Clearly, the concern is higher with high dose fish oil.

Hi Zoners,

Cranberrycat does not know the details of my long history of fish oil supplementation. Barry Sears has worked with me directly for almost 9 years, adjusting my fish oil dose numerous times to fit my varying needs. During this time, my Omega Rx dose has been a little as 1 capsule every third day and as much as 4 capsules daily.

In his book, THE OMEGA RX ZONE, on pages 85 and 86, Dr. Sears explains the studies that demonstrate there are no adverse effects on bleeding time when taking larger amounts of fish oil. One of them even concluded there were no adverse effects on the bleeding time when fish oil was combined with aspirin or Coumadin, a blood thinning drug used to prevent clot formation. In addition, recent studies were done with patients taking 18 grams, 20 grams and 25 grams of long chain omega 3 (fish oil) which all showed no increase in bleeding time. These studies are referenced in the book, for those who would like to learn more about them.

Sorry, Sue. I only know what I read here, and I don't think I ever read that you had taken that much fish oil for a sustained amount of time, or that you were ever taking that much fish oil at a time when you had urgent surgery. I stand corrected.

I know what SEARS says, but I have also seen some studies published on what other medical professionals have seen. I can go searching for them later (kind of in a pinch to get ready for work right now...). BTW, there are many more factors involved with anti-coagulation, more than just "bleeding time", and if that was the only factor that was studied, then the studies might be too narrow. But, I will look at them.

That being said, I personally take a high dose of fish oil, and I feel safe with it. The risks are pretty low, but I would not go out on a limb and recommend fish oil for those who take aspirin or Coumadin, without having one consult with a physician.

QUOTE Jennifer: I am thinking I will end up just ordering the Natural Factors from iHerb END Quote
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Jennifer; Use the referral code I posted, previously - to get a $5 coupon for Natural Factors from iHerb dot com.

Thanks for the fish oil update. Actually, out of all of the benefits of the diet as a whole, I am most impressed with how the fish oil has made a definite improvement for me.

Hi Mari,

Can you please email me the link to where you are currently getting your OmegaRx from? I'd appreciate it.
healthymartin(at)gmail.com.

Thanks so much!

Martin