The Top Resource for Relevant, Original Fish Oil Supplements Content
Nov
8
By the time you finish reading this, you’ll have a great understanding of what makes pharmaceutical grade fish oil the safest and most effective fish oil on the market, and why it can be unhealthy to choose otherwise.
The term “pharmaceutical grade fish oil” was coined by Dr. Barry Sears, a staunch advocate for rigorous testing and experimenting involving high doses of ultra-pure omega 3 supplements. His research and findings are nothing short of amazing, and make a very compelling case for the daily use of long-chain omega 3 fatty acids in the diet.
This type of fish oil is the kind seen on the shelves in stores. It’s important to know these are not pharmaceutical grade omega 3 oils because of the way they’re manufactured. Often they contain high amounts of toxic chemicals like PCBs, dioxin and mercury which are all extremely toxic to human beings.
As fish exist in the wild, the amount of toxins their skins absorb is directly related to the pollution levels in their regions of the ocean. Often, the manufacturers of health food grade oils don’t do the best job at making attempts to purify them or extract them from good fish sources.
The fish oil supplement standards in the United States are dangerously lax and “allow manufacturers to put whatever they want on a product label as long as it doesn’t promise to cure or prevent a particular disease” (Sears p 95). This is disconcerting to say the least. Over-consumption of health food grade oils can quickly lead to nasty side effects like cramps, GI issues, mercury poisoning and exposure to carcinogens like PCBs and dioxin.
Based on the downsides of health food grade fish oil, you probably clearly see the need for a purer alternative. What makes an omega 3 oil “pharmaceutical grade”? Simply put, you can define an omega 3 oil as “pharmaceutical grade” once it passes ultra-stringent purity standards. These standards require impurities to be measured and verified by a third party and the results printed on a Certificate of Analysis for public view. Pharmaceutical grade fish oil also needs to be comprised of more than 60% total omega 3 fatty acids and have impurities so low that they’re either nearly, or completely undetectable in order to qualify.
Many different companies who cannot substantiate their purity claims will mark up their products with “pharmaceutical grade” on the labels in an attempt to sell more products. It’s important you see through this, and first check for the company’s Certificate of Analysis. If the company you’re working with cannot, or will not provide this information for you then something is very wrong. Most companies that offer pharmaceutical grade oils have their Certificate of Analysis proudly posted on their websites to prove their claims.
For your reference, and I hope this isn’t too scientific, here are the standards that need to be followed in order to consider a fish oil pharmaceutical grade:
So you can see, pharmaceutical grade fish oil standards are literally thousands of times more stringent than the requirements for standard health food grade oil, and it is the adherence to these standards – verified by the Certificate of Analysis – that allows an omega 3 oil to be considered pharmaceutical grade.
Now that you’re armed with this knowledge, it’s time to make your move and start doing some smart shopping for fish oil. You know what to look for and you know what to avoid, and always remember that the Certificate of Analysis is your proof of purity and guiding light to choosing the right products.
To learn more about the pharmaceutical grade fish oil I use daily, please visit my page today.
Nov
6
By the time you finish reading this article, you’ll have an excellent idea of what to start looking for with the best fish oil supplements.
What are the best fish oil supplements to go with? I get asked this question often, so I decided to dedicate this brief article to answering the market’s demand for relevant information on this topic.
When looking for fish oil supplements to buy, it is important to consider the purity of the oil. What do I mean by purity? Before a fish’s skin is pressed for its oil, it has lived in the ocean for a time. During its life, certain impurities like mercury can accumulate. While this is entirely normal, it’s not at all desirable because of the concerns that surround mercury poisoning. You’ll want to make sure that the fish oil supplements you consider have been put through a process known as “molecular distillation”. This process reduces impurity levels to near zero and makes the fish oil supplements safe to ingest.
There are four standards of purification levels fish oil supplements must pass through in order to be deemed safe enough to ingest. These standards are:
Ideally, the fish oil you consider should have standards greater than, or equal to, all four of these standards depending on where you are buying your fish oil supplements from.
When looking for the best fish oil to buy, you also should check the supplier’s Certificate of Analysis. This is an official statement of the measured impurities in the particular fish oil supplements you’re looking at. You’ll want to aim for fish oil supplements that offer verified, non-detectable levels of pollutants. Certain oceans are known for having low pollution levels due to the absence of commercial activity in nearby areas. When choosing fish oil supplements, you’ll want to verify where they were made. Bonus points should be given to companies that manufacture their oil from fish in the South Seas.
Freshness is extremely important when considering the best fish oil supplements to buy. What people don’t often realize is that as fish oil sits unused, or is manufactured poorly, it can become oxidized and can actually negate what you’re aiming to accomplish.
When you purchase fish oil supplements, the first thing you should look for is the company’s Certificate of Analysis and verify the measured oxidation levels. You should look for the word “TOTOX” on the certificate which is an abbreviation for “total oxidation”. It is comprised of two numbers and it is important to make sure that both of these numbers are present on the certificate as some companies try to show the better of the two and pass the product off as “safe” while the other number that you don’t see is off the charts. If these numbers are near zero, the product is completely safe to ingest. Also, fish oil supplements should never have any rancid odors or smells. If this is the case, avoid that product completely. The acceptable standard for TOTOX scores are typically 19-24. Anywhere in this range is acceptable, although if you can find products lower than 19, the better off you are.
It is also noteworthy to look at whether the purity the fish oil supplements was verified by external sources. While this is not essential, it certainly doesn’t hurt.
Have you ever had that feeling while browsing a website or visiting a store that the owner wasn’t being 100% honest with you? You may have asked some tough questions that forced the owner to reveal his hand of cards and all of a sudden he’s trying to get rid of you like you have the plague. Well, the chances are the owner had something to hide. I’ve seen this kind of behavior quite frequently with different companies. You’ll always want to purchase fish oil supplements from a company that is transparent. The ideal company will document everything so consumers can have their concerns addressed. All of their certificates, customer testimonials, research results and ingredients are publicly posted on their site or inside the store to review.
Simply put, no one wants to buy a product that can’t offer some excellent, credible customer testimonials. No one speaks better truth than one customer to another. When considering fish oil supplements, work with a company that can prove customer satisfaction to you by showing you several examples of testimonials. The testimonials should be genuine and specific.
Many times companies that cannot substantiate their claims about purity and freshness will charge up to twice as much for their product. “Why do they do that?” you ask. One would think that the worse a product is, the less expensive it would be. That’s exactly why they do it. It’s called “perceived value”. If I tell you the price is low, you’ll think it’s a bad product. If I tell you it’s expensive, you’ll think it’s a premium product. This is an old marketing trick that’s been used many times very effectively. Our minds tend to equate spending more money with achieving higher quality. Often, higher prices mask hidden downsides. Don’t fall for this. Your health is far too precious.
To learn more about the premium fish oil supplements I use daily, feel free to visit my page.
Oct
30
Let’s face it, when we start looking at new supplements we’ve heard are beneficial, the dosages are typically shrouded in mystery. How do you determine fish oil dosage? Can we treat it like medication and simply use body weight and age, or is there more to the picture than that? Is there even a need to define a dosage when it comes to fish oil supplements? Is there such a thing as “too little” or “too much” fish oil?
The question of determining fish oil dosage needs to be answered not in terms of age and weight, but rather in terms of eicosanoid balance.
Eicosanoids (Eye-ko-sun-oids) and You
Eicosanoids can be generally defined as signaling molecules within the body that play vital roles in nearly every bodily process. They are derived from omega 3 and omega 6 fatty acids and can either work vastly in your favor to promote longevity and freedom from chronic illness, or they can work against you in the exact opposite manner causing early mental and physical breakdown.
Good Eicosanoids
Good eicosanoids are derived from omega 3 fatty acids typically found in fresh fish, walnuts, fish oil supplements, flax seeds, sprouts, algae and kale. The “good” eicosanoids will provide your body with tremendous benefit. For example:
Bad Eicosanoids
Bad eicosanoids, as their name implies, are not helpful in the least. We can treat them as doing the exact opposite of what the good ones do. If the bad eicosanoids present in your body are not sufficiently counteracted with daily intake of omega 3, you will experience inflammation, memory problems, fatigue, depression and a whole host of other chronic conditions.
So, what does this all have to do with fish oil dosage? Well, the goal we want to focus on is maintaining proper balance between the “good” and the “bad” eicosanoids. The “bad” are created directly from omega 6 sources like soybean oil, safflower oil, cottonseed oil, saturated fats and trans-fats. You should avoid these as much as possible to keep your bad eicosanoids to a minimum.
The “good” on the other hand come from daily intake of omega 3 fatty acids. The best source for this is undoubtedly high fish oil dosage supplements, but you can also get your intake from pumpkin seeds or flax. Since the concentration of omega 3 in these sources is relatively low, you would need to consume large quantities to get the proper amount. This is why high fish oil dosage supplements are so desirable.
Back to the Dosage Question
So, exactly what fish oil dosage do we need to consume on a daily basis? Well, the answer is not in your weight, or age. The fish oil dosage question can be answered by taking a good look at how you feel and what your overall health is like.
There are many other maladies bad eicosanoids can cause, but if you answered “yes” to most or all of these questions, you should start on 3-4 grams per day. In some people with more severe forms of chronic diseases, it is not uncommon for the fish oil dosage to be close to 10g. At the same time you should start to reduce your intake of foods that contain omega 6. Remember, the goal here is to boost the good eicosanoids with omega 3 and reduce the bad eicosanoids by reducing omega 6.
If you are on any type of blood thinning medication like Coumadin, you should speak with your doctor before ever ingesting fish oil supplements. Since fish oil supplements thin the blood, it is important to consider how this effect combines with the blood thinning effects of Coumadin.
On the other hand, if you answered “yes” to one or two of these questions you’re probably still in the first 2-3 decades of life and in great shape. You should only take about 1-2 grams daily for maintenance and prevention of chronic conditions. Your body will thank you later.
You also want to make sure that the fish oil you use is molecularly distilled. Molecular distillation removes mercury and contaminants from fish oil making it a very safe and cost effective way of getting your daily omega 3 intake.
To learn more about the high dosage fish oil supplement I use daily to maintain good eicosanoid balance, feel free to visit my page.
