Q: My husband and 16-year-old daughter currently taking 4 grams EPA and DHA per day. I take 8 grams per day because of pain. We eat steel-cut oats three times per week for GLA. You seem to recommend taking one tablespoon of toasted sesame seed oil per day also to reduce free radicals from the fish oil. Could we take COQ10 instead of the toasted sesame seed oil for the same effect? If so, how much should each of us take per day? If not, should I be taking more of the toasted sesame seed oil, since I am taking double the amount of fish oil?
Thanks, Heather
A: CoQ10 is both an anti-oxidant and necessary for electron transport in the mitochrondria to convert dietary calories into ATP for chemical energy. The toasted sesame oil contains sesamol that inhibits the conversion of DGLA into AA. The two effects are totally different from each other. I would recommend keeping your sesame oil constant unless the pain returns. If it does, I would increase the fish oil instead of the sesame oil.