You’ve decided to take Omega 3 supplements. You know how good they are for you, you know about the warnings over eating too much fish and you’ve decided the best way to get your Omega 3 fatty acids is daily capsules. But how to you find the highest quality fish oil supplements?
Firstly let me say, not all Omega 3 supplements are the same. There is a good reason to find high quality Omega 3 capsules. Here’s what you look for.
1. Purity and cleanliness.
Fish is generally contaminated and the FDA tells us not to eat too much for this reason. Supplements can be too and some have been withdrawn for this reason. One of the biggest determinants of fish oil quality is it’s cleanliness.
Most oil from fish used for supplements is cleaned by a process called molecular distillation. This works, but there is at least one company that doesn’t think this is sufficient and adds a second cleansing process as well as molecular distillation. And this company also believes you need to know the quality if your fish right from the beginning and so they control the entire catching process right from fisherman to oil processing.
2. Freshness.
Fish can go rancid, or go off. When this happens it has oxidized. You get that “fishy” taste and smell. Some manufacturers even add masking scents so you can’t notice it as much. You need to choose the highest quality fish oil supplements that have only fresh oils that aren’t oxidized.
3. The amount of DHA.
DHA is the most important of the Omega 3 polyunsaturated fatty acids, along with EPA. It’s really the DHA that you’re buying, the rest is just the carrier. Most Omega 3 capsules are 18/12 capsules. That means you get 18%, or 180 mg, of DHA in a 1000 mg capsule, and 12%, or 120 mg of EPA.
But the best quality Omega 3 capsules give you 28% DHA, so 280 mg per 1000 mg capsule. That’s somewhere around 280 mg of DHA per 1000 mg capsule, and that’s around almost 2 1/2 times more DHA than your “average” Omega 3 supplements.
4. How effective are the Omega 3 fats?
And when you take your Omega 3 supplements they fish oil needs to be absorbed into your body from your stomach. Not all absorb the same. It’s called “Bioavailability” and it gets complicated, visit my website if you want to find out more.
Some brands of fish oil supplements work better than others. The major benefit of Omega 3 fatty acids is their anti inflammatory effects. And one Omega 3 supplement has been shown in studies to be around twice as effective as an anti inflammatory as others.
And of course price comes into it too, though isn’t the most important factor. But you still need to do a price and value comparison which isn’t easy.
So there’s a relatively simple summary of the things to look for in quality fish oil supplements. Fish oil quality does matter.
I write much more extensively about this on my website and also do a price/value comparison there as well if you’re interested.
Want to know more about how to Compare Fish Oil Capsules by price? Or about more about finding high Quality Omega 3 supplements? Visit Peter’s Website Healthy Omega 3 Fish Oil.
