Here are a couple of questions regarding fish oil that I hear all the time
5/13/2011 8:36 AM
Q. You recommend 30 grams of fish oil per day? Are you sure that’s not per month? That doesn’t seem safe!
Q. Can’t I just take flax oil?
I recently came across one study that actually addressed both of these issues. It was published back in 2005 in Reproduction Nutrition Development by Canadian researchers from the University of Guelph in Ontario. This study was particularly interesting because they used a daily dose of 60 grams of either olive oil, flax oil, or fish oil—the highest dose I’ve seen in any study. Their reasoning to use such a high dose was in an effort to achieve similar blood levels of EPA and DHA to those of the Japanese or even the Greenland Inuit. The original researchers of omega-3s Bang and Dyerberg back in the 70s had found that the Eskimo diet could exceed 600 grams of fat per day and that the “polyunsaturated fatty acids in Eskimo food are highly dominated by the omega-3 family” (Bang, Dyerberg, Am. J. Clin. Nutr. 1980). The Canadian researchers’ goal was to improve the ratio of arachidonic acid (AA) to eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) over a 12 week period. AA is an omega-6 which is very common in the Western diet while EPA is a long chain omega-3 (most commonly found in fish) that is found in abundance in the Inuit and Japanese diets. The Japanese have been found to have an AA/EPA ratio of about 1.7 (a lower number being better), while a typical Westerner has an AA/EPA ratio of approximately 15. High blood levels of omega-3s (specifically EPA and DHA) are associated with a decreased risk of all kinds of diseases ranging from heart disease to neurological disorders and many more.
They key findings showed that while the AA/EPA ratio did decrease in the flax group (from 11.1 to 6.4 or 43%), the fish oil group was far superior, dropping from 16.5 to 1.4 or 91%. In addition, flax oil showed no statistically significant increase in EPA or DHA even when using a 60 gram per day dose! Fish oil showed a 944% increase in EPA and a 213% increase in DHA. Is 60 grams too much? There were no serious adverse events in any group, with only some individuals reporting loose stools and fish burp in the flax and fish oil groups, which lessened throughout the supplementation period.
Managing the types of dietary fats may not seem that important to some, but the membrane of every cell in your body is made up of two layers of fat molecules (the lipid bi-layer). You choose what type of fats make up your cell membranes every day by the supplement and food choices you make. When you increase your levels of EPA and DHA in your cell membranes, your risk of many diseases goes down over the long term, but your pain, inflammation, and stiffness will also decrease in the short term.
Reprod Nutr Dev. 2005 Sep-Oct;45(5):549-58. Effect of randomized supplementation with high dose olive, flax or fish oil on serum phospholipid fatty acid levels in adults with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. Young GS, Conquer JA, Thomas R. SourceHuman Biology and Nutritional Sciences, University of Guelph, Guelph, Ontario N1G 5B6, Canada.
14 comment(s) so far...
Re: Here are a couple of questions regarding fish oil that I hear all the time
Hi Coach,
Is the best way to split the 30g recommended dosage equally between the 3 main meals (i.e. 10g a meal) or are their other times such as postworkout/mid-day snacks that they should/could be consumed with as well? Thanks in advance.
By Graham Laidlaw on
5/13/2011 9:13 AM
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Re: Here are a couple of questions regarding fish oil that I hear all the time
Great Article! A lot of people have been waiting for this explanation, and research backing, for years! Thanks!
By Al on
5/13/2011 11:04 AM
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Re: Here are a couple of questions regarding fish oil that I hear all the time
I like to divide the dosage into 6 times a day, 5 grams at a time. That would be for an obese person. If you eat well for a long time, and supplement appropriately, there comes a point where you don't need the fish oils. That is provided you only eat wild meats/grass fed meats/ and great sources of fish. You would need a comprehensive metabolic profile to assess, as the ones provided by BioSignature practitioners who have done the lab testing class.
By Coach Poliquin on
5/13/2011 11:16 AM
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Re: Here are a couple of questions regarding fish oil that I hear all the time
@ Al, any meal, except the post-workout shake is appropriate to taking in your EFAs.
By Coach Poliquin on
5/13/2011 11:16 AM
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Re: Here are a couple of questions regarding fish oil that I hear all the time
Great post Coach. What's your take on canola oil? It's recommended as a salad and cooking oil in the Paleo Diet but I didn't know if there were any contraindications of its use. Thanks
By Eric Benedict on
5/13/2011 12:25 PM
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Re: Here are a couple of questions regarding fish oil that I hear all the time
The following is a quote for this article from Dr. Mark Houston: "It is important to take a high quality omega 3 fatty acid with balance DHA, EPA, GLA and gamma delta tocopherol. Chronic high dose omega 3 fatty acids will increase oxidative stress in cell membranes which is balanced with the gamma delta topopherol. The DHA and EPA will deplete GLA over time. The best balance is EPA to DHA at 3 to 2 ratio with GLA at 50% of the total dose
of DHA + EPA. The gamma delta tocopherol dose is about 100 mg per 1000 mg of DHA and EPA. EFA SIRT Supreme 4 to 6 capsules twice per day is the ideal dose."
By Susan Lang Puckett on
5/13/2011 2:03 PM
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Re: Here are a couple of questions regarding fish oil that I hear all the time
@Susan. Check out the youtube video of Dr. Houston and Charles discussing that exact issue, as well as the one regarding the synergy of fish oil and carnitine. Also check out Charles' EFA Complete Px recommended by Dr. Houston.
By Timothy Evangelista on
5/13/2011 8:35 PM
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Re: Here are a couple of questions regarding fish oil that I hear all the time
600g of fat a day! That is amazing!
By Nathan on
5/14/2011 12:42 PM
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Re: Here are a couple of questions regarding fish oil that I hear all the time
I definitely need to translate this one to Polish
By Andrzej Wodyn Roszkowski on
5/14/2011 4:56 PM
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Re: Here are a couple of questions regarding fish oil that I hear all the time
@Eric Benedict
Shortly saying, canola oil is a garbage (over-processed gmo)
By Anna on
5/14/2011 10:52 PM
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Re: Here are a couple of questions regarding fish oil that I hear all the time
@ Coach Poliquin, I take up to 30g of fish oil a day, and have done since mid January. I am finding that of late I am very bruising easily. I have been told that it is due to the high dose of fish oil thinning my blood. Would you recommend I back off maintenance level of say 4-6g a day or stop all together.
By Adam on
5/17/2011 12:38 AM
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Re: Here are a couple of questions regarding fish oil that I hear all the time
Hi There
I have been working with my personal trainer and taking 30g of fish oil per day (6 intervals). I am Type 1 Diabetic and recently I have been experiencing hyperglycemia and some nausea/headaches. Could the recent addition of this amount of fish oil into my diet be the reason for this? I have eliminated any other factor which I think could influence my blood glucose readings.
Thanks, Shona
By shona on
7/20/2011 11:53 AM
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Re: Here are a couple of questions regarding fish oil that I hear all the time
Hi There
I have been working with my personal trainer and taking 30g of fish oil per day (6 intervals). I am Type 1 Diabetic and recently I have been experiencing hyperglycemia and some nausea/headaches. Could the recent addition of this amount of fish oil into my diet be the reason for this? I have eliminated any other factor which I think could influence my blood glucose readings.
Thanks, Shona
By shona on
7/21/2011 7:56 AM
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Re: Here are a couple of questions regarding fish oil that I hear all the time
I have heard that too much fish oil reduces testosterone in males. Does anyone have any knowledge of this, or studies to point me to?
Randy
By Randy on
8/18/2011 3:46 PM
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