Q: I don’t understand the difference between branched chain amino acid (BCAA) supplements and protein powders. I heard a trainer at my gym say he uses both. But I don’t get why. Are they better for different things? Should I take them at different times?

-Jim F.

A: Hi Jim,

We’re all taught in school that protein is an essential building block for all human life. Well, you can think of amino acids as building blocks for protein.

There are two types of amino acids: essential and non-essential. You don’t need to worry about the non-essentials because your body makes them on its own. But you need to get the essential amino acids from food. Branched chain amino acids—leucine, isoleucine, and valine—fall into this category.

Their branched-chain structure makes them easily absorbed into the bloodstream and effective at stimulating muscle growth. For instance, your muscles use leucine for energy during exercise. This prevents your body from breaking down muscle tissue for energy.

Protein powders—like whey—are also used to grow and preserve muscle tissue. They contain BCAAs and other important amino acids. The difference is that protein powders have relatively small amounts of BCAAs. So you get less of them per serving. A BCAA supplement is concentrated.

Why does this matter? Remember, BCAAs are easy to absorb. They don’t require much processing by your body, so they get to your muscles quickly. This makes them suitable for pre-workout energy and/or post-workout recovery. So when that trainer said he uses both, it likely means he takes BCAAs before—or even during—exercise and then has a protein shake afterwards.

There are two tricks I use to make a post-workout shake even more effective. Both rely upon amino acids.

First, I get an unflavored BCAA powder. This allows me to add it to my post-workout shake. It’s like turbo-charging your muscle recovery. The sooner you can drink this after a workout, the better. Another benefit is that you can add it to smoothies or a plain glass of water for some extra muscle support at any time of day.

The second trick is to also add glutamine. It’s an amino acid, but not a BCAA. Glutamine helps boost the amount of healthy bacteria in your gut. This translates to easier digestion and a stronger immune system. My wife took 10-15 grams of it every day while she was pregnant.

Like the other amino acids, glutamine promotes muscle building. But it is also very effective for preventing muscle wasting. This is important for people concerned with preserving muscular strength—especially as they get older.

Some BCAA supplements add glutamine. But most do not. So if yours doesn’t have it, buy an unflavored glutamine powder separately. Or find a BCAA plus glutamine supplement for next time. These are becoming increasingly popular and are easy to find in most vitamin stores and online.

Protein powders and BCAAs are both important for muscle recovery, Jim. They just work a bit differently to get to the end goal. But there’s no need to choose one or the other. Follow these tips and I’m confident you’ll achieve your best results yet.

Best,

Dr. Wayne J. Broth

Q: What are the best sources of omega-3 fatty acids? I’m eating salmon once or twice a week, but I’m trying to add more. I’m not opposed to a supplement, but I’m not sure exactly what to look for in one.

-Brian S.

A: Hi Brian,

You’re on the right track. Omega-3 fatty acids are an important part of a well-balanced nutritional plan—whether they come from food or supplement sources.

Omega-3 fatty acids are one of the classes of poly-unsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) on which we rely. In contrast with saturated fats (solid at room temperature), and mono-unsaturated fats (solid only in the fridge), PUFAs are liquid at any temperature.

There are five important categories of PUFAs, including omega-3, -5, -6, -7 and -9 fats. We need a proper balance of all five categories.

The -3 and -6 versions contain fats known as “essential,” because we must obtain them from our diets. The others we are able to synthesize. The proper balance can be estimated based on a generally nutritious diet. But it can only be precisely determined with a blood test. (More on that in a moment.)

Let’s start with the diet.

Omega-3s can come from either animals (cold water fish) or plants (flax, certain nuts), but it is the sources from animals that are the most valuable to us. They contain the fats DHA (docosahexaenoic acid) and EPA (eicosapentaenoic acid) pre-formed and ready for our bodies to use.

Generally, plants contain ALA (alpha-linolenic acid). It must be converted in our bodies before it’s fully useful for everything we need. Not everybody does this at the same rate, which makes salmon a much better human food than flax. (Not to mention that salmon tastes a lot better than flax when you want something lightly grilled on a summer evening.)

Eating cold water fish two-three times a week is a good basic amount. I encourage some of those fish to be tiny ones such as sardines or mackerel. Even salmon from pristine waters carry more of the toxic metal mercury than sardines.

Omega-6s are found in nuts, cereals, and grains. This is in addition to the meat, milk, and eggs from animals that eat the aforementioned nuts, cereals, and grains. For poultry, that usually works just fine. But this does not work to our advantage when it comes to cows.

Their natural diet is green grass (or hay). They become healthier food for us when they’re eating what they’re meant to eat. Grass-fed beef and wild game both have a lot more omega-3 PUFAs than grain-fed beef, so they can be good food sources as well.

Eons ago, humans ate omega-6s and omega-3s in roughly equal proportions. But the standard American diet now contains 20-50 times as much omega 6s. This is largely because vegetable oils are a major source of PUFAs. It’s estimated that 9% of all calories in the U.S. come from one omega-6 fat: linoleic acid.

This omega-6 to omega-3 ratio reflects a general tendency toward inflammation and disease in the body. Best at 1:1, that ratio becomes highly inflammatory as it passes 10:1 and approaches levels as high as 50:1... I have never seen someone deficient in omega-6 fatty acids!

One of the jobs assigned to omega-3 PUFAs in your body is the task of cleaning up the inflammatory tendencies of omega-6s. So you need a LOT more omega 3s if you are eating lots of nuts, breads, grains, pasta, and the worst source of all: vegetable oils.

The only oils in my kitchen are olive, coconut, and avocado… How about yours? I also cook with butter, lard, and duck fat—but those aren’t actually oils.

Omega-5 and -7 PUFAs can be found in those same fatty fish full of omega 3s, as well as tropical oils (-5s) and macadamia nuts (-7s). Finally, omega-9 fatty acids are found in olive oil, macadamias, poultry fat, and lard. They can also be found in canola, peanut, and sunflower oils. But because of GMO and other considerations, I do not usually recommend those oils.

For a salad dressing to go with that summer salmon, I think we can agree that olive oil, perhaps with a dash of macadamia, is the best choice for taste as well as health.

Overall, if you’re eating grass-fed beef, a moderate amount of poultry, and cold water fish 2-3 times a week, you’re probably getting enough omega 3s… So long as you keep your levels of omega 6 in moderation. I’d suggest a complete ban on vegetable oils. Look for omega 6s from nuts, dairy, poultry, and—if you eat them—carefully cooked grains.

If you want to know how you’re doing, you’ll need a special test to check the levels of the different PUFAs in your blood, or an omega-3 index. It is available through Quest Diagnostics or Life Extension Labs, among others.

For those who just don’t eat cold water fish, I would recommend an omega-3 supplement made with high quality fish oil. Usually, about 1,500 mg a day is sufficient. Find a supplement with EPA and DHA in roughly equal amounts, or a 3:2 ratio of EPA to DHA.

Freshness and quality are crucial. Fish oils are delicate… A rancid supplement is worse than no supplement at all. I would buy from a reputable online source or a smaller and conscientious store, rather than a big box store that allows more opportunities for the supplements to become overheated and rancid.

If the price tag seems high, follow my supplement principle: Buy the better one, but take it according to how often you can afford to buy it. Again, better a good supplement three times a week, than a rancid one daily.

I hope that helps, Brian. Enjoy your salmon dinner!

To Your Health,

Dr. Deborah Gordon
 

Q: I want to enjoy summer without damaging my skin. I know most sunscreens contain harmful chemicals and additives. Are there any natural alternatives you recommend in place of conventional sunscreens?

-Barbara P.

A: Hi Barbara,

There absolutely are!

All sunscreens come with a measure of SPF (Sun Protection Factor). The greater the number, the longer you are able to stay in the sun without burning.

Multiply the SPF number by how long you can be in the sun (without external protection) before you burn. So if you normally start to burn after about 10 minutes, SPF 15 should allow you to go 150 minutes without burning. I refer to that as your sun tolerance.

Sun tolerance is based on many factors. These include genetics, frequency of sun exposure, nutrition, hydration, and antioxidant capacity.

Natural sunscreens are usually prepared with combination of oils and minerals which can protect the skin from UVA and UVB radiation. I use a sunscreen by Del Mar Beach Supply Co. called Shade on my toddler while she is in heavy sun. She has never had a burn. It contains natural oils and 25% non-nano zinc oxide. It is important to use a non-nano mineral sunscreen because it prevents your skin from absorbing the ingredients.

Coconut oil has been used for centuries and has an SPF of about 4-7. If you have fair skin, this gives you between 10 and 20 minutes before you burn. Using coconut oil would increase your safe sun time to anywhere from 40 to 140 minutes. This would be okay for most instances of sun exposure.

However, if you plan to stay outside for long periods during peak sun time (11 a.m. to 3 p.m.), you should opt for more protection.

Some people can be in the sun for hours without burning. If you have darker skin… Are well hydrated… Have an abundance of antioxidants and fat soluble vitamins floating in your blood and stored in your cells… Then you are much more prepared to safely handle sunrays. But this is not reflective of the typical American.

The protection you choose has to fit your constitution and lifestyle.

A study published in the Journal of Internal Medicine in 2014 showed people with the least sun exposure were twice as likely to die as those with the most sun exposure. Sun exposure is important because it increases vitamin D levels. People with low blood levels of vitamin D tend to be more likely to get cancer and also have an increase in mortality risk.

The sun is our original energy source. Have you ever noticed that many flowers close on a cloudy day? We need the sun for vitality as much as any other living thing. Sunscreen is a barrier to skin absorbing sun and creating vitamin D.

A study published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute actually found higher rates of cancer in sunscreen users. There is also some evidence that UVB rays actually decrease the risk of melanoma. This is why some consider coconut oil the perfect barrier. It keeps out the harmful rays and lets in just enough of the sun to stay healthy.

I remember my mother, every year before we vacationed in Florida, taking a couple weeks of preparing her skin at the tanning salon. Although I am not promoting tanning booths, there is certainly benefit to getting a “base tan.” There’s a natural solution for applying this idea.

Here is a helpful protocol via ChiroHealth Rockford to ease into using coconut oil as sunscreen without getting burned:

• Day one: Apply a thin layer of organic coconut oil to your skin. Then go into the sun for about 20 minutes. (You want your skin to become slightly pink, but not red.)


• Days two through 14: Apply a thin layer of coconut oil to your skin, just like the previous day. But increase your sun exposure by about 10 minutes. (Ex: 30 total minutes on day two, 40 total minutes on day three, etc.)

After about two weeks, you should be able to use coconut oil to protect your skin for several hours at a time without getting a sunburn. But this also depends on where you live and the time of year. So make sure you ease into this.

There are other oils with a similar SPF to coconut oil, such as shea butter and olive oil. But there are some with an even higher SPF than coconut oil:

Good luck, Barbara!

Best Wishes,

Dr. Shannon Amori

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