If you’vebeen reading this newsletter for awhile, or even followingthe traditional media recently, you know that fish oil/codliver oil have enormous health benefits -- specifically, theyare one of the very few sources of omega-3 with DHA and EPAthat Americans are so desperatelylacking In short, as part of a healthy eating plan, itis essential for nearly every American to include fish oilin their daily diet.

Just as important,though, is to ensure that the fish oil is of the highest quality.Otherwise, the benefits will likely be minimized, or reducedaltogether, as the situation with Costco fish oil below suggests.

I have recommendedfish oils to my patients for several years. Early on, basedon my research and discussions with other medical professionals,I realized that the Carlson’s brand of fish oil and codliver oil is of exceptional quality, with no detectable heavymetal or toxin levels. Indeed, over time it has proved toprovide outstanding clinical benefits.

Also early on,however, one of my primary mentors on omega-3 recommendedthe Costco brand of fish oil for its low cost and high quality.I was a bit surprised they could sell 300 capsules for under$8 and still make a profit, but I also realized my patientsmight appreciate the savings. The price of the Carlson’soil is higher, and the Carlson’s was also generally moredifficult to find than the Costco.

So I had the Costcofish oil analyzed by three different labs. They found theheavy metal content was indeed very low, and the oxidationproducts were also quite low, so I felt it was reasonableto recommend their oil. A number of health care professionalsgave me flack for recommending fish oil from Costco, but Ibelieved I had done my due diligence with the lab testingand, as always, wanted the best for my patients and readers,in terms of quality and price.

Well, I startedusing the Costco brand in my own practice, and I started consumingit myself. Not too long ago, however, I began to notice thatmany of my patients who had positive benefits with the Carlson’soil -- specifically, many of those with Raynaud's, Sclerodermaand Rheumatoid arthritis -- started to relapse once they switchedto the Costco brand.

What’s more,I started to have my own negative experience with the Costcofish oil. Some of you may know I have beta-thalassemia. Thisis a genetic anemia somewhat similar to sickle cell anemiathat frequently results in very low cholesterol levels asa side effect. My normal cholesterol level is around 110-120.For many years I had been unable to normalize it, but earlierthis year I was finally able to increase it to 185 througha combination of raw egg yolks and cod liver oil. I was notsurprised, as cod liver oil and fish oil have been shown tohelp normalize cholesterol levels; if your cholesterol levelsare too high, it should help lower it, and if your cholesterollevels are too low, it should help raise it.

Mine remained at185 for 4 months until I switched to Costco fish oil; my cholesterolthen dropped to 140. As I hadn't changed anything else inmy diet, this strongly suggested that the Costco fish oilwas not helping to normalize my cholesterol levels, as theCarlson's had done. Sure enough, when I switched to Carlson’sfish oil that I now offer on the site, my cholesterol increasedback up to 180. Furthermore, some of my patients with highcholesterol had found that the Carlson's was lowering theircholesterol levels, but their levels began to rise again whenthey switched to the Costco, so they switched back to Carlson's.

I immediately stoppedrecommending the Costco brand, to my patients and here inthe newsletter, because it was clear there was some unmeasuredvariable or factor in the Costco oil that was lowering itseffectiveness -- in many of my patients, and in myself --relative to the Carlson brand. This is not to suggest thatthe Costco brand is dangerous in any way; from what I haveseen, though, it is far less effective than Carlson’s.My suspicion is that some damage is occurring to the molecularstructure of the Costco fish oil in the processing and transferto the capsules that impairs its effectiveness, though that’sonly an educated guess.

Whatever the case,I now advise against the Costco fish oil, and strongly suggestusing caution with other brands. I have not examined everybrand on the market, but the one -- and currently only --brand I can confidently recommend is Carlson’s.