Is taking fish oil environmentally irresponsible?
In a paper published in a Canadian medical journal last week, researchers argue that the benefits of taking fish oil are not well enough substantiated to justify its widespread use. The authors are concerned that the growing demand for fish oil will deplete fish populations.
Not well enough substantiated? That's pretty hard to fathom. The evidence linking the consumption of oily fish or fish oil supplements with improved cardiovascular and brain health is over-whelming. Compelling enough to cause the American Heart Association and the National Academies of Science (among others) to revise their nutritional guidelines to include specific recommendations for Omega-3 intake. It's also fairly clear that plant sources of omega-3 fatty acids, while beneficial, are not as biologically active as the longer-chain fatty acids found in fish body oils.
Good for us, bad for the planet?
But what about the sustainability question? This is far muddier than the issue of whether taking fish oil is beneficial to the general population. Fisheries around the world are certainly facing great pressures due to increased demand. Questions over whether increased (or even current) production is sustainable are very real.
The race is on to develop more sustainable sources of long-chain omega-3s. We already have algae-produced DHA and algae-produced EPA is hopefully not far behind. This advance would allow us to produce vegan omega-3 supplements that contained the more potent long-chain fatty acids without using any fish.
But consider this very interesting and cogent observation made by fatty acid researcher William Lands: the demand for omega-3 supplements would be much lower if we were to reduce our intake of omega-6 fats, found in corn and other vegetables oils and abundant in processed and packaged foods.
Current recommendations for omega-3 intake are based on the amount of omega-3 fats needed to balance our intake of omega-6 fats. (The ratio of these two fats in the diet is at least as important as the absolute amounts.) Lands points out that, "If we just lowered the current flood of omega-6 fats, sustainable amounts of omega-3 fats could manage our health.”
If you'd like to read more about this issue, Here's a summary and interview with the authors from Science Daily. By way of rebuttal, check out this article by Craig Weatherby. Keep in mind, however, that Craig works for Vital Seafood, a company that sells fish and fish oil (albeit with an admirable commitment to environmental sustainability).
Obviously, it's a complex issue. I'm interested to hear your thoughts! Personally, I think Dr. Land's advice makes a lot of sense. Sometimes, less is more.
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Posted by: SOURCE-OMEGA | Oct 8, 2009 7:35:29 AM
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PURE ONE™ is therefore considered better suited for pregnant mothers, children and adults of all agaes all around the world.
Posted by: Leaking Ink | Aug 11, 2009 5:25:21 PM
All I know is: gives me heartburn and makes me feel nauseous and sick to me stomach even when I use supposedly "no reflux" fish oil and take it with meals. Anybody have a
REAL solution for this problem?
Posted by: Fish Oil | Jun 30, 2009 12:20:46 PM
I have been taking a vitamin supplement from Top Form Nutrition that contains Borage Seed oil, Flax Seed oil and Fish oil. It seems to work very well, i can feel an increase in energy.
Also i feel like im a little happier and in a better mood more often since taking it. Anyone else had similar results taking a flax or fish oil supplement ?
http://www.mytopform.com/essential-fatty-acids.html
Posted by: julie | Jun 14, 2009 3:46:13 PM
I tend toward high triglycerides even with a good diet, so for me, the 4 fish oil capsules a day are more like medicine than supplementation. I just don't love sardines enough to eat them more than twice a week. And yes, my triglycerides plummeted with the addition of fish oil to a diet that already included oat and flax on a daily basis, limited refined carbohydrates, limited saturated fat, and emphasis on monounsaturated fats (olive oil, avocado, peanuts).
Posted by: Chris Speed | May 20, 2009 10:16:48 AM
I think it is great that people atre taking omega-3's for heart disease prevention, but don't forget mood disorders and depresson as well. A great site for information on this is www.PlusEPA.com
Amazing information that not many people know about.
Posted by: Jeremiah Eufemio | May 18, 2009 10:45:42 PM
I just dont see the beauty of relying so much on drugs and foos supplements as well...
If we consumers are living in a healthy way from the beginning, we would not have problems such as severe heart ailments...
We can always consult our Nutritionist and Dieticians to advice us on waht to eat. Eating healthy can supplement us with what we need without the expence of damaging our planet because we want to concentrate the nutrients we need inside a soft gel capsule...
I have seen alot of TV ads promoting their product as enriched with L-Carnitine, EPA, Fat Soluble vitamins etc...
we can get all this goodness in fresh and healthy foods...
Posted by: Jon | May 18, 2009 1:59:57 PM
I find it astonishing that so few people who posted responses here actually finished reading the article. Proof? If these people had read it, they wouldn't be posting drivel about plant-sourced Omega-3.
**SMH**
Posted by: Jerry | Apr 30, 2009 9:24:18 AM
A good 'ol cup of oatmeal with 6 tbspn of flax seeds will do the trick.
Posted by: Ron | Apr 29, 2009 7:32:39 PM
Thank you, Will, that is interesting - but it seems to me that if you want to improve your blood lipids generally, the best solution is to eat mostly or entirely whole plant foods and little or no extracted oils. You'd get mostly mono fats from nuts and seeds, without too much omega-6 fat. Then you'd need very little or no EPA, and not much DHA, as you wouldn't be compensating for the excessive omega-6 intake (and the excessive saturated fat in meat).
Posted by: Will | Apr 29, 2009 6:09:17 PM
in response to post by "Ron" regarding fish oil raising bad cholesterol levels...
http://www.healthcentral.com/cholesterol/c/7986/16181/fish-oil-raise/
Posted by: Rod C. | Apr 29, 2009 5:46:03 AM
The problem with vegetarian sources of omega-3 is they're not as complete as animal sources. The sustainability issue is a valid concern. However, supplementing with both salmon oil and vegetable source (flax or algae) is a possible option. Also, omega-3's are in abundance in organic vegetarian-fed meat, eggs, and dairy.
Posted by: ross | Apr 28, 2009 8:29:52 PM
i wonder how much timing has to do with the n-3/n-6 balance. for example, if i eat some hazelnuts for breakfast, then halibut for lunch, there is a ~4 hour period between the ingestion of the foods. since it takes ~24 hours to digest food, at what point in the process would the presence of n-6 actually inhibit the uptake of n-3 the most? presumably, eating a single food item with a high n-3/n-6 ratio would be very different from eating two separate food items at different times that contain the exact same amounts of each EFA respectively. perhaps in addition to reducing n-6 consumption, precise meal planning and coordinated eating patterns might also help to maximize healthfulness while reducing cost/impact.
Posted by: Ron | Apr 28, 2009 12:32:15 AM
2 capsules of the water4 V-Pure product provide 50 mg EPA. Too much EPA will keep your blood from clotting. People eat too much meat, and compensate for its artery-clogging properties by eating fish or taking fish oil. Better to eat more plants and need less EPA.
Water4 is arranging to have a better supply, and to ship it from here in the U.S. I think the delay will not be an ongoing problem.
Fish oil supplements will raise your LDL (bad) cholesterol, suppress your immune system, and if you take enough to lower your overall cholesterol, may make you put on weight:
http://www.nealhendrickson.com/mcdougall/030200pufishisnothealthfood.htm
Posted by: Ron | Apr 26, 2009 1:24:51 AM
Vegan DHA/EPA supplements from algae are available:
No need to risk the potential contamination of fish oil or rape the seas.
Monica's Response: Eventually, I think that algae-sourced omega-3s will be a great solution. However, availability for algae-based supplements is still a problem (there's a 4 week wait for one of these sources).
There's also a potency issue. The currently available algae-based omega-3s are very low in EPA, only 10 to 20 mg per 1000 g capsule. That's about 5-10% of what you get in fish oil. For now, although algae-sourced Omega 3s can provide DHA, I would not consider them to be a good source of EPA.
Posted by: Michael | Apr 25, 2009 10:49:08 AM
Link to the BMJ Meta-Analysis:
León H, Shibata MC, Sivakumaran S, Dorgan M, Chatterley T, Tsuyuki RT. Effect
of fish oil on arrhythmias and mortality: systematic review. BMJ. 2008 Dec
23;337:a2931. doi: 10.1136/bmj.a2931. Review. PubMed PMID: 19106137
http://www.bmj.com/cgi/content/full/337/dec23_2/a2931
Also, on the relative merits of flax oil/ALA vs fish oil, at least on cardiovascular outcomes, they appear to be at least equivalent -- see eg. this head-to-head trial of fish oil ("two capsules three times daily (1.08 g/day of EPA and 0.72 g/day of DHA)" vs. ALA from mustard oil (ALA 2.9 g/day):
Singh RB, Niaz MA, Sharma JP, Kumar R, Rastogi V, Moshiri M. Randomized,
double-blind, placebo-controlled trial of fish oil and mustard oil in patients
with suspected acute myocardial infarction: the Indian experiment of infarct
survival--4. Cardiovasc Drugs Ther. 1997 Jul;11(3):485-91. PubMed PMID: 9310278.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/9310278?dopt=Abstract
Posted by: Michael | Apr 25, 2009 10:39:12 AM
Hi,
I understand your incredulity about fish oil caps' benefits being insufficiently substantiated, but a recent, widely-publicized meta-analysis of published "Randomised controlled trials of fish oil as dietary supplements in humans" including "12 studies totalling 32 779 found a surprisingly modest "reduction in deaths from cardiac causes (0.80, 0.69 to 0.92)" but "no effect on arrhythmias or all cause mortality" "(0.92, 0.82 to 1.03)," and "The dose-response relation for DHA and EPA on reduction in deaths from cardiac causes was not significant."
Granted that these trials were mostly conducted in patients with heart disease, who should in principle have had the greatest benefit in *total* mortality because cardiac death is so large a risk within the range of causes of deaths in such people, so weak an effect really is surprising, and does suggest that the benefits in the rest of us may be on even less solid ground.
Conclusions
Posted by: Sarah Mackay | Apr 25, 2009 10:31:23 AM
Until these algae producing organisms can provide us with the omega-3 fatty acids needed for our health, I believe we should focus on sustainable fish sources. Afterall, not all farmed fish are bad for our health. Many of us are led to believe that because farmed Salmon is bad for our health and the environment that the same is true for other fish varieties. This is simply not the case. I currently live in Ecuador and try to indulge in farmed freshwater trout about once a week for its nutrition. It has almost as much Omega 3 fatty acids as Salmon (1370mg per 100g compared to 1455mg in Salmon) and because they are farmed in fresh water also have a considerably low murcury count. As for sustainability, obviously farmed reserves will never be wiped out(the tragedy of the commons is not at play). It's also really delcious and pink like salmon. Highly recommended on my part.
When looking for sustainable and nutritious farmed fish, tilapia and catfish are other options, although they won't give you quite the Omega-3 boost as trout.
Posted by: Janelle Newell | Apr 24, 2009 1:20:07 AM
Hemp seed oil is the highest oil in essential fatty acids: 75-80% total EFAs.
(EFA's = Essential Fatty Acids)
It has the ideal ratio ( 3:1 ) of omega 6 to omega 3 essential fatty acids.
"Omega Essential Oils in a cold pressed, unrefined and hexane-free product can produce..
90% Total EFAs found in Hemp Oil:
18% Omega-3 - Linolenic Acid
60% Omega-6 - Linoleic Acid
12% Omega-9 - Gamma-Linoleic Acid (Harder to Find) "
Because we can not synthesize EFA's, supplemental EFA is suggested. Due to increasing levels of contaminants found in our food supply, specifically in coldwater fish, hemp seed oil is an ideal supplement.
Posted by: susan allport | Apr 1, 2009 9:34:42 AM
Eating fish is not the only way; nor is it the best way to get your omega-3s. Thought you would be interested in this short omega-3 video: http://www.youtube.com/profile?user=queenoffats
Posted by: Jennifer McGuire | Mar 31, 2009 6:26:38 PM
It is important for consumers, such as the first commenter, to know the type of omega-3s in fish (long-chain EPA and DHA) are different than the type in flaxseed and other plant sources (shorter-chain ALA), and they do not offer equal health benefits. A recent position statement from the International Society for the Study of Fatty Acids and Lipids (ISSFAL) makes clear the fact that DHA is critical for brain development and function, and brain cells make very little amounts of DHA from ALA.
http://www.issfal.org.uk/images/stories/pdfs/ala%20dha%20statement%20finawordversionl.doc
Here is a well-done news article on the issue.
http://www.nutraingredients-usa.com/Research/ALA-DHA-conversion-negligible-say-fatty-acids-experts
Sincerely,
Jennifer McGuire, MS, RD
National Fisheries Institute
www.blogaboutseafood.com
Posted by: Michel Petit,m.d. | Mar 31, 2009 4:00:18 PM
We will always be able to get omega 3 from algae.
Martek Biosciences markets Neuromins omega 3 from algae.
Monica's Response: I believe that only DHA supplements from algae are currently available, not EPA.
Posted by: elizabeth | Mar 31, 2009 11:51:29 AM
I used to take a lot of fish oil, and I seemed to need it to avoid feeling depressed. But when i changed my diet to a more vegan/vegetarian diet, it seemed that my need for fish oil went down. I still take it from time to time, when my tracking on nutritiondata.com shows too many inflammatory foods, but I don't need as much, presumably because there is not as much omega-6 in my diet.
Posted by: Alex Baran | Mar 31, 2009 9:55:17 AM
Fish consumption is not the only way to increase the amounts of omega-3 fatty acids in your body. I read at http://www.projectweightloss.com what foods can also be a great source of omega-3 fatty acids. The diet of modern people mostly consists of grains and seeds, and that is why people consume large amounts of polyunsaturated fats, omega-6 fatty acids. Omega-6 fatty acids are also important for your health but they do not lead to the same benefits as omega-3 acids. Omega-6s are not as dynamic and fast as the omega-3 acids.
