Perilla Oil

Perilla oil comes from the seeds of the plant, Perilla frutescens; it's also called the beefsteak plant, and has been consumed in the Asian diet for thousands of years.

It is indigenous and grows in Korea, Japan, China, and even as far west as India.

The perilla is a purplish plant and can reach a height of about two feet with its flowers blooming in July and August.

It is a member of the mint family and is a common ingredient in Japanese cooking or the Japanese diet.

• For pregnant women, the perilla stem can be used for alleviating morning sickness.
• It promotes circulation in the chest and diaphragm, Chinese medicine practitioners assert.
• Perilla oil helps to relieve pain in the chest and abdominal areas.
• Perilla oil is helpful to the cardiovascular system; it also is believed to be helpful in lowering the bad cholesterol (LDL)
• May help asthma and obesity.
• Is a blood thinner and is believed to help minimize inflammation in the blood.
• Perilla Oil is believed to be helpful in staving off colon and breast cancer

It should be noted that Perilla oil benefits all revolve around its high concentration of ALA, one of the types of Omega-3 fatty acids. EPA and DHA are two primary essential fatty acids that we feel are even better for you than ALA. That's not to diminish the importance or capability of ALA. The problem is that with the consumption of Perilla Oil or Flaxseed Oil, or any ALA that comes from plants, is that the ALA must be converted into DHA and EPA in the body before it's usable. The second problem is that as people age, the ability to make this conversion diminishes -- especially with the elderly.

In fact, the conversion process may not take place at all! Ideally, it's best to take the EPA and DHA directly without conversion process needed. ALA found in Perilla Oil has many benefits, but the need for this conversion isn't one of them. EPA and DHA are obtained from cold-water fish or supplementation. Cold water fish that have high concentrations of fish oil are salmon, tuna, mackerel, hoki, etc.

If you'd like to learn more about the basics of fish oil supplements and why they are so beneficial, you can click here to get info on fish oil benefits and how it helps our health. Or you can read about it here at this page as well.

Two general guidelines and precautions we recommend. If you've explored other pages throughout out site, you know we recommended two things:

1) If you are pregnant and/or nursing, consult with your doctor before taking any kind of supplement or beginning any kind of supplement program.
2) Those taking OTC, prescription drugs should consult with their doctor as well for perilla oil is a blood thinner and can exacerbate the effects of other blood thinners like aspirin, ibuprofen, warfarin, lovenox, and fragmin. Some herbs are anti-coagulants as well so be aware of including garlic, turmeric, gingko biloba, horse chestnut, and red clover.
While there are no known side effects from taking large doses of perilla stem, keep your dosage from 3 to 10 grams.

Err on the side of caution. Be advised different parts of the perilla are used for different conditions. The parts that are used are the seeds and the perilla leaf.

I hope this Perilla Oil Benefits web page has been useful to you.

Yours in health,
Nutritional-Supplement-Bible.com