Publisher/Editor
Randy Hartnell
Producer
Craig Weatherby
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VitalChoices
NEW Herbs & Spices
Certified Organic and Kosher
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Customers had often asked us to expand our seasoning offerings beyond our Organic Salmon Marinade blend. We thought they had a good idea, but it took time to secure superior sources.
Each fresh, flavorful seasoning in our new line of 10 Organic Herbs & Spices is certified Organic and Kosher (OU), and is naturally rich in beneficial “phytoceutical” compounds.
And if, like many, your pantry harbors some old, faded seasonings, our Herbs and Spices Medley package—which includes our Organic Salmon Marinade blend—will upgrade your seasonings scene in one fell swoop!
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Enjoy Alaska's Natural Beauty Up Close!
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We don’t normally advertise other companies but wanted to share something really special with you: a “trip of a lifetime” to astonishingly beautiful Southeast Alaska.
Like us (Vital Choice owners Randy and Dave), our old friend Dennis Rogers was a long-time Alaskan fisherman. Now, his Alaska Sea Adventures charters offer multi-day journeys for up to eight guests at a time.
These amazing journeys provide an unsurpassed opportunity to experience the natural wonders of Alaska's Inside Passage: a group of wide, glorious waterways that wend through a chain of lushly forested islands, and offer easy access to fjords, glaciers, whales, orca, porpoise, bears, and eagles.
In 2004, Dr. Andrew Weil joined us for a week aboard the M/V Alaska Adventurer, as described in Vital Choice Explores Southeast Alaska.
Voyages fill up early, so if you’re interested in a trip this coming season don’t delay!
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Vital Choices!
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Like Your Lox Luscious?
Ours Makes Mouths Water
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Vital Choice smoked salmon is far superior to the preservative-laden farmed product found in most grocery stores.
After curing in natural alder wood smoke, our Smoked Sockeye Portions and silky, Cold-Smoked Sliced Nova Lox are immediately vacuum-packed and flash-frozen. Thawed and served, they taste as though they came fresh out of the smoker.
"I am in love with the hot-smoked salmon. It is fabulous flaked and scrambled with eggs and onions. They give the eggs a lovely zing." — Dana Jacobi, author of 12 Best Foods Cookbook.
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The World's Finest Fish Oil
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We put only whole, unrefined oil from wild Alaskan sockeye salmon in our premium salmon oil supplements. Wild Alaskan sockeye salmon is one of the cleanest fish in the sea: a trait reflected in the purity of our unrefined sockeye oil, which is now certified by NSF: one of the best-respected independent labs in the U.S.
Because our naturally pure salmon oil does not need to be distilled, it provides the essential omega-3 fatty acids (EPA & DHA), plus 30 other natural fatty acids and astaxanthin: the potent antioxidant that gives sockeye its distinctive deep-red color.
Last, but not least, ours comes in pure fish-gelatin capsules and it is the only salmon oil supplement certified as sustainably sourced by the Marine Stewardship Council (www.msc.org).
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Why Our Albacore Tuna's A Cut Above
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Our young, low-weight Pacific Albacore Tuna—fresh or canned—is simply superior!
Smaller means safer: Vital Choice troll-caught tuna weigh just 12 lbs. or less, so they contain less mercury, and more omega-3s, than the larger troll-caught tuna touted by other “minimal mercury” vendors.
No loitering allowed: Our tuna are hauled in fast, bled, and flash-frozen within about two hours. (Standard long-line-caught albacore spend 12 hours in the water.)
Better, fresher flavor, even in the can: Unlike standard canned albacore—which is cooked twice at great cost to flavor and omega-3 content—Vital Choice tuna is cooked only once (in the can) to preserve its healthful oils and fresh flavor.
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The Vital Choice Advantage
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Click here to learn about the Vital Choice Advantage ... the many reasons why William Sears, M.D. — renowned as "America's Baby Doctor"— calls Vital Choice his favorite salmon source.
Vital Choice was founded by two longtime Alaska fishermen—Randy Hartnell and Dave Hamburg—who know where to get the highest quality fish. And they test it periodically to ensure your safety.
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Berries to Live For!
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Vital Choice fresh-frozen organic blueberries, strawberries and red raspberries are rich in anti-aging antioxidants, and draw customer comments like this:
“OH MY GOODNESS! I cannot believe the flavor ... the taste reminds me of something from my childhood. Thanks for a great product!
Berries are incredibly healthful foods, and it's smart to seek out organic berries, grown without synthetic pesticides.
Our organic berries come in convenient one pound bags, each yielding about 3-1/2 cups. They freeze well, so you can keep plenty on hand!
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Our brand new holiday catalog, which features several exciting new offerings. To receive yours, click here.
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Omega-3 DHA Improves Infant Hand-Eye Coordination
Study confirms long-term advantages for children whose mothers take supplemental DHA
by Craig Weatherby
While clinical results remain mixed, a growing body of evidence supports the hypothetical benefits that should accrue to breastfed children when their mothers’ diets are rich in DHA: one of two key omega-3 fatty acids found only in marine algae and fish.
As we reported last fall (see "Kids' Attention Spans Improved"), most studies have shown that feeding infants formulas fortified with the two fatty acids most important to the integrity and function of cell membranes—omega-3 DHA and omega-6 arachidonic acid—results in significant cognitive enhancements such as increased attention span.
Now, the results of a study published in July of this year (Jensen CL, et al.) show that the young children of mothers who take supplemental DHA display improved hand-eye coordination as toddlers (30 months of age).
What the study showed
Researchers at Houston’s Baylor College of Medicine set out to see whether infants benefitted when their nursing mothers took supplemental DHA (docosahexaenoic acid). As they hypothesized, the results were positive, probably because DHA—an omega-3 fatty acid—is essential to brain and eye development.
During the four months following delivery of their babies, half of a group of 227 breastfeeding women took a daily capsule containing 200mg DHA, while the other half took a vegetable oil capsule containing no DHA.
At the end of four months, DHA levels in the mothers’ milk and the infants’ blood phospholipid levels were about 75 and 35 percent higher, respectively, in the DHA group than in the placebo control group. (Phospholipids are fats and fat-like substances that constitute the major structural elements of most cell membranes.)
At first, there was no obvious difference between the two groups in brain or eye development. However, at 30 months, the DHA group scored higher on a measure of hand-eye co-ordination called the Bayley Psychomotor Development Index. (No difference between the two groups was seen in a mental development test.)
The researchers came to this conclusion: “DHA supplementation of breastfeeding mothers results in higher infant plasma phospholipid DHA contents during supplementation and a higher Bayley Psychomotor Development Index at 30 months of age ... .”
As “America’s pediatrician”, Dr William Sears, commented, "This study adds to a growing body of evidence showing that DHA supplementation during breastfeeding results in long-term benefits for children … [its results] suggest that women in the US should consider DHA supplementation during pregnancy and nursing.”
Sources
- Jensen CL, Voigt RG, Prager TC, Zou YL, Fraley JK, Rozelle JC, Turcich MR, Llorente AM, Anderson RE, Heird WC. Effects of maternal docosahexaenoic acid intake on visual function and neurodevelopment in breastfed term infants. Am J Clin Nutr. 2005 Jul;82(1):125-32.
- Auestad N, Halter R, Hall RT, Blatter M, Bogle ML, Burks W, Erickson JR, Fitzgerald KM, Dobson V, Innis SM, Singer LT, Montalto MB, Jacobs JR, Qiu W, Bornstein MH. Growth and development in term infants fed long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids: a double-masked, randomized, parallel, prospective, multivariate study. Pediatrics. 2001 Aug;108(2):372-81.
- Auestad N, Scott DT, Janowsky JS, Jacobsen C, Carroll RE, Montalto MB, Halter R, Qiu W, Jacobs JR, Connor WE, Connor SL, Taylor JA, Neuringer M, Fitzgerald KM, Hall RT. Visual, cognitive, and language assessments at 39 months: a follow-up study of children fed formulas containing long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids to 1 year of age. Pediatrics. 2003 Sep;112(3 Pt 1):e177-83.
- Benolken RM, Anderson RE, Wheeler TG. 1973. Membrane fatty acids associated with the electrical response in visual excitation. Science 182:1253-1254
- Birch EE, Castaneda YS, Wheaton DH, Birch DG, Uauy RD, Hoffman DR. Visual maturation of term infants fed long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acid-supplemented or control formula for 12 mo. Am J Clin Nutr. 2005 Apr;81(4):871-9.
- Carlson SE, et al. 1993a. Visual acuity development in healthy preterm infants: effect of marine-oil supplementation. Am. J. Clin. Nutr. 58:35-42.
- Carlson SE, et al. 1993b. Arachidonic acid status correlates with first year growth in preterm infants. Proc Natl Acad Sci 90:1073-1077.
- Champoux M, et al. 2002. Fatty acid formula supplementation and neuromotor development in rhesus monkey neonates. Pediatr Res 51:273-281.
- Cheruku SR, et al. 2002. Higher maternal plasma docosahexaenoic acid during pregnancy is associated with more mature neonatal sleep-state patterning. Am J Clin Nutr 76:608-613.
- Colombo J, Kannass KN, Shaddy DJ, Kundurthi S, Maikranz JM, Anderson CJ, Blaga OM, Carlson SE. Maternal DHA and the development of attention in infancy and toddlerhood. Child Dev 2004;75:1254-1267.
- Cunnane SC, et al. 2000. Breast-fed infants achieve a higher rate of brain and whole body docosahexaenoate accumulation than formula-fed infants not consuming dietary docosahexaenoate. Lipids 35:105-111.
- Gibson RA, Neumann MA, Makrides M. Effect of increasing breast milk docosahexaenoic acid on plasma and erythrocyte phospholipid fatty acids and neural indices of exclusively breast fed infants. Eur J Clin Nutr. 1997 Sep;51(9):578-84.
- Heird WC. The role of polyunsaturated fatty acids in term and preterm infants and breastfeeding mothers. Pediatr Clin North Am. 2001 Feb;48(1):173-88. Review.
- Helland IB, Saugstad OD, Smith L, Saarem K, Solvoll K, Ganes T, Drevon CA. Similar effects on infants of n-3 and n-6 fatty acids supplementation to pregnant and lactating women. Pediatrics. 2001 Nov;108(5):E82.
- Hoffman DR, Birch EE, Birch DG, Uauy R, Castaneda YS, Lapus MG, Wheaton DH. Impact of early dietary intake and blood lipid composition of long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids on later visual development. J Pediatr Gastroenterol Nutr. 2000 Nov;31(5):540-53.
- Hoffman DR, Theuer RC, Castaneda YS, Wheaton DH, Bosworth RG, O'Connor AR, Morale SE, Wiedemann LE, Birch EE. Maturation of visual acuity is accelerated in breast-fed term infants fed baby food containing DHA-enriched egg yolk. J Nutr. 2004 Sep;134(9):2307-13.
- Jensen CL, Maude M, Anderson RE, Heird WC. Effect of docosahexaenoic acid supplementation of lactating women on the fatty acid composition of breast milk lipids and maternal and infant plasma phospholipids. Am J Clin Nutr. 2000 Jan;71(1 Suppl):292S-9S.
- Lauritzen L, Jorgensen MH, Mikkelsen TB, Skovgaard M, Straarup EM, Olsen SF, Hoy CE, Michaelsen KF. Maternal fish oil supplementation in lactation: effect on visual acuity and n-3 fatty acid content of infant erythrocytes. Lipids. 2004 Mar;39(3):195-206.
- Mercola J. http://www.mercola.com/2003/jun/18/baby_formula.htm
- O'Connor DL, Hall R, Adamkin D, Auestad N, Castillo M, Connor WE, Connor SL, Fitzgerald K, Groh-Wargo S, Hartmann EE, Jacobs J, Janowsky J, Lucas A, Margeson D, Mena P, Neuringer M, Nesin M, Singer L, Stephenson T, Szabo J, Zemon V; Ross Preterm Lipid Study. Growth and development in preterm infants fed long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids: a prospective, randomized controlled trial. Pediatrics. 2001 Aug;108(2):359-71.
- Uauy R, et al. 1992. Visual and brain-function measurements in studies of n-3 fatty-acid requirements of infants. J Pediat 120:S168-S180.
- Uauy R, et al. 2000. Long chain polyunsaturated fatty acid formation in neonates: effect of gestational age and intrauterine growth. Pediatr Res 47:127-135.
[PRINTER FRIENDLY VERSION]
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