Some fish oil supplements contain less omega-3 fatty acids than their labels claim.
ConsumerLab.com, a commercial testing company in White Plains, New York, conducted the study, released this month.
The good news is that these fish oil supplements did not appear to pose a risk of mercury poisoning -- a risk that can be very real when routinely consuming certain fish, such as Atlantic salmon and most all tuna.
The bad news is that a number of products had significantly less DHA and/or EPA than claimed.
EPA (eicosapentaenoic acids) and DHA (docosahexaenoic acid) are fatty acids, also known as omega-3 fatty acids, found in fish and fish oil. Many people take dietary supplements containing omega-3 fatty acids because evidence suggests they can lower heart disease risk.
ConsumerLab.com purchased 20 dietary supplements and tested their levels of EPA and DHA. Six of the products contained only 50% to 80% of the amount of DHA listed on their labels, according to Cooperman. Two of the dietary supplements contained 32% and 82%, respectively, of the amount of EPA listed on their labels.
ConsumerLab.com
Omega 3 fats are essential to the body. Many people eat fish regularly to obtain the benefits of these oils.
As the article above states, one needs to exercise great caution when consuming fish.
Though fish are a healthy food, mercury pollution from the coal plants used to generate 55% of the electrical power in the US has so contaminated the waterways and the fish that live in them. One needs to be aware that all fish are potentially contaminated with mercury.
This is such a significant issue that the conservative US government has advised pregnant women to avoid fish as more than 60,000 children are born in the US every year with brain injury as a result of eating this food.
My list of safe fish:
Summer Flounder Wild Pacific Salmon Croaker Sardines Haddock Tilapia
Not a very big list. It is important to note that farmed fish are very similar to commercial beef. The fish are fed grain products and the beneficial omega 3 fatty acids (EPA and DHA) are totally distorted. Additionally, non-organic grain is used, so the fish pick up the pesticides that were used on the grains and also that run-off from neighboring farmland.
So I would recommend limiting fish consumption and suggest you consider replacing it with cod liver oil. NOT the cod liver oil you typically think of from many decades ago.
Most cod liver oil from the past was improperly processed and as a result was rancid and tasted terrible. My current favorite is from Carlson Labs. Their lemon flavored cod liver oil tastes like lemon melted butter.
The cod liver oil also has the additional advantage of providing vitamin D, which is necessary for most of us in the US to take in the cold winter months when we don't get very much sun exposure on our skin to make vitamin D.
I do a fair amount of hair analysis in my practice and have observed that it is an incredibly sensitive indicator of mercury exposure in the last few months. I can generally tell a person how many times they ate fish in the last three months by the level of mercury in their hair.
Now, please recognize that mercury is a poison. It is a toxin that has absolutely no biological purpose in the human body. Any mercury in the body is too much.
As the article above implies, supplements and cod liver oil do not seem to be contaminated with mercury. I have not seen an elevation in the many hundreds of people who take cod liver oil, that I have done hair analysis on.
There are two additional ways to increase omega 3 fats in your diet. The simple way would be to use freshly ground flax seeds (use an inexpensive coffee grinder). I use about 1/3 of a cup a few times a week and put it on top of my vegetable pulp.
And last, you could eat beef that has been raised on grass and not grains. We have an excellent resource we have identified here.
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Omega-3 is Essential to the Human Body