Fish Oil Supplements

Fish oil is one of the most beneficial supplements you can take and for good reason. Studies have repeatedly shown significant benefits such as improving your cardiovascular system to helping you shed fat.

With so many fish oil supplements and omega-3 supplements available on the market, it can be quite a daunting task to find the right fish oil supplement for you. A big problem is that many of these supplements are simply not good. To understand why all fish oil pills are not created equal, simply look to the foundations of capitalism. Unfortunately, many manufacturers compromise on quality to get maximum profit from their product. Because fish oil is such an important supplement, it only makes sense to supplement with a quality product.

There are many factors to consider when deciding which product to choose.

1. Types of fish oil supplements and omega-3 supplements

Fish oil supplements can be purchased in three forms: liquid form, gel capsule form (fish oil pills), and soft chewable form. Gel capsule form is by far the most popular form of fish oil supplements. For those of you who do not like the idea of taking fish oil pills or gel capsules, liquid form fish oil supplements may be a better alternative. However, be forewarned. Fish oil supplements in liquid form can be quite unappetizing although many companies have been diligently working t0 create more palatable forms of oil by flavoring them with flavors such as lemon.

2. Purity of the fish oil supplement and omega-3 supplements

As I alluded to on my page Fish Oil Side Effects, there is a chance that fish oil supplements can be contaminated with heavy metals, particularly mercury. To avoid choosing a fish oil supplement with mercury many factors must be taken into account such as the size of the fish used to make the oil,  the kind of fish and location of where the fish was caught.

Look for independent, 3rd party tested fish oil supplements. Just because a supplement says it is guaranteed or the most effective form, doesn’t mean it is pure and doesn’t contain contaminants. When searching for supplements, many time I will look for the USP Verified seal.

3. EPA vs DHA

As you may recall from Fish Oil Benefits, fish oil supplements are compromised mainly of two types of fat, EPA (eicosapentaenoic acid) and DHA (docosahexaenoic acid). When someone discusses fish oil, they normally refer to EPA and DHA together, as if they are the same thing when in actuality they are not. In general, in most well renown research on fish oil, researchers have used fish oil with relatively balanced amounts of EPA and DHA. Many conclusions drawn by researchers have led people to believe that both fats have the same benefits when they actually do not.

Due to the discrepancies between EPA and DHA, it is important to find a fish oil supplement that has relatively balanced amounts of EPA and DHA. Many cheap fish oil supplements will actually have much more EPA than DHA as a way to lower the cost for the consumer. While this may help you wallet, you could potentially lose the many benefits of DHA that you wouldn’t had you chosen a product with an optimal rati0 between the two.