August 2010 – So as I predicted a few years ago, the drug companies are at it again. It seems that fish oil is now available by prescription. I’m not kidding. I predicted this a few years ago, as well as ephedra becoming available by prescription. No news on the ephedra yet, but time will tell.

So why are the drug companies jumping on the fish oil bandwagon? I’m sure it is profit-driven, but they will say it is not. Maybe they just want to help all of us.

First off, what is fish oil?

Fish oil is made from made from the tissue of certain species of fish, such as salmon, tuna, mackerel and trout. It is an excellent source of the Omega-3 fatty acids eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and decosahexaenoic acid (DHA).

These fatty acids have many benefits, which we will review later.

The quality of fish oil is dependent on several things, most notably what kinds of fish are used, how it is processed and how pure it is. Salmon, tuna, sardines and anchovies are the best sources of Omega-3 fatty acids, making fish oil made from these fish your best options.

The following information is taken from www.fishoilbenefit.net:

“Another indication of quality is the ratio of EPA and DHA per capsule. Many manufacturers include the milligrams of fish oil on their labels. However, less than one third of that number is actually the essential Omega-3 fatty acids. In order to determine the quality of the fish oil and Omega-3s then, the amounts of EPA and DHA per serving must be added. For example, a fish oil capsule that is 1,000 mg fish oil may contain 200 mg of EPA and 150 mg of DHA, meaning the capsule provides 350 mg of Omega-3 fatty acids.

Here are a few simple rules to follow in order to choose the highest quality fish oil supplement:

  • “The fish oil must contain Omega-3 fatty acids, not just “fish oil.” Remember, it is from the Omega-3 fatty acids that we receive health benefits.
  • The supplement should list the total amount of EPA and DHA on the label. You want to get a supplement where the total of the EPA and DHA adds up to the total amount of oils in the product. If there is only 350 mg of Omega-3 fatty acids but the capsule is 1,000 mg, what kind of oil makes up the missing 650 mg? The closer to the overall capsule size, the better.
  • The oil should be pressed only from the flesh of the fish. Some supplements are pressed from heads, tails, or internal organs. You wouldn’t eat these parts on a fish if you were obtaining your Omega-3 fatty acids via the food source. Thus, you shouldn’t want a supplement made out of the inedible parts of the fish either.
  • The fish used for the oil should be health screened and disease-free. This means the manufacturer needs to know where their fish is coming from and must assess the fish before including them in their processing plant.
  • The fish oil should not have been molecularly distilled. Molecularly distilling oxidizes and alters the natural form of the oil. Sometimes the oil is molecularly distilled to remove toxins. However, the fish should not have been contaminated in the first place and so should not have required molecular distillation. If the fish in the supplement required molecular distillation, you have to ask how polluted the fish oil was before the distillation and decide if you really want to put that low quality of fish oil in your body.

In addition to label checking to ensure quality, product contamination affects the quality level of fish oil supplements, and is a common concern. A particular concern is the presence of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), dioxins and heavy metals, such as mercury. It is common knowledge that fish contains mercury and mercury in high levels is detrimental to health. However, recent studies failed to find detectable levels of mercury in products of fish oil that were analyzed. Additionally, significant levels of PCBs and dioxins were not found either. It is believed that mercury was not found in detectable levels because most mercury in fish is concentrated in the meat, rather than the oil. Another reason for the undetectable levels of mercury is the distillation process that the fish oil supplements undergo. This process removes contaminants, such as heavy metals and other toxins. Therefore, while product contamination is a legitimate concern, it is not one that needs to be considered too deeply.”

Benefits of Fish Oil

Fish oil has many benefits, let’s look at some of them here:

  • fish oil lowers triglycerides: it helps lower bad blood fats and helps increase “good” cholesterol
  • fish oil lowers inflammation (from www.fishoilbenefit.net):
    “Omega-3 fatty acids are not only good for the heart; they also help to reduce inflammation. This is perhaps one of the most valuable benefits of the Omega-3 fatty acids found in fish oil, as inflammation is associated with many serious diseases. Heart disease, cancer, autoimmune diseases, psoriasis, and Alzheimer’s, for example, are characterized by increased levels of pro-inflammatory markers. Omega-3 fatty acids from fish oil reduce inflammation by preventing production of pro-inflammatory signaling molecules. This may help to prevent serious illness associated with inflammation.”
  • Fish oil helps arthritis (from www.fishoilbenefit.net):
    “The ability of fish oil to reduce inflammation is not only good for preventing serious illnesses, such as heart disease and cancer. Fish oil is also effective in reducing the symptoms and pain of arthritis. Morning stiffness and joint tenderness was shown to decrease with regular intake of fish oil supplements. Fish oil does not act as a painkiller, and it takes regular use before a difference is noticed. However, fish oil is a viable, natural way to reduce the pain and symptoms associated with arthritis if one is dedicated to the long term outcome rather than focused on immediate cessation of symptoms.”
  • Fish oil helps keep you young (from www.fishoilbenefit.net):
    “As if the benefits of fish oil on heart health and arthritis were not enough, it is believed that fish oil also helps with anti-aging as well. Omega-3 fatty acids slow the rate at which protective caps on the end of chromosomes shorten, thus increasing the lifespan of cells. The caps, or telomeres, are made from copied strands of DNA and prevent the chromosomes from becoming damaged. When a cell divides, its telomere gets shorter until it can get no shorter and the DNA becomes damaged. When the DNA is damaged the cell no longer divides. Omega-3 fatty acids found in fish oil slows the deterioration of the telomeres, resulting in longer life of cells.”
  • fish oil is good for your eyes (from www.fishoilbenefit.net):
    “Age-related macular degeneration – better sight Prolonging the life of cells is not the only anti-aging benefit of fish oil. Fish oil has also been shown to significantly reduce the risk of developing age-related macular degeneration. A major component of the eye’s retina is DHA, accounting for 60% of the fatty acids in the retina. Macular degeneration is a common cause of blindness in the elderly and has no effective treatment. Omega-3 fatty acids help support healthy circulation and blood vessel strength, as well as naturally lowering cholesterol levels—all of which are causes of macular degeneration. Due to the benefits of fish oil, it may prove to be the first effective treatment against macular degeneration.”
  • fish oil is good for you and your unborn baby (from www.fishoilbenefit.net):
    “The benefits of Omega-3 fatty acids found in fish oil are not only for the aging or those facing serious medical issues. Fish oil has also been shown to be beneficial to pregnant women and the unborn child. It is recommended that a pregnant woman have 900 mg of fish oil per day, which is equivalent to a serving of salmon per day. The benefits to the unborn child are numerous and include: a healthier brain with increased intelligence; good nervous system development; better eyesight from retina formation; fewer behavioral problems after birth; and better sleeping patterns as a new born. The mother also receives benefits from her consumption of fish oil. These benefits include: a lower chance of developing preeclampsia; a decreased chance of preterm labor; and a greatly reduced incidence of breast cancer. With benefits such as those, all pregnant women should adhere to the recommended daily dosage of fish oil and thus increase her odds of delivering a happy and healthy child. The reason fish oil is so beneficial to the unborn child is because 70% of a newborn’s brain, retina and nervous system are made up of the Omega-3 fatty acids, DHA and EPA. Therefore, increasing the amount of these fatty acids present in the mother’s diet, and therefore being given to her unborn child, aides in the child’s development of the brain, retina and nervous system.”
  • fish oil is great for mental health (from www.fishoilbenefit.net):
    “Not only is fish oil beneficial to physical health, fish oil is also beneficial to mental health. Alzheimer’s is a debilitating disease causing memory loss, dementia, personality change, and eventually death. People with Alzheimer’s have a reduced amount of a protein called LR11, which prevents toxic “plaques”—deposits of a protein that are toxic to neurons in the brain. The Omega-3 fatty acid, DHA, increases the production of the protein LR11, thus decreasing the amount of toxic “plaques” and helping to prevent the occurrence of Alzheimer’s.
    Fish oil and depression, bipolar disorder, and schizophrenia: Fish oil does not only help prevent Alzheimer’s. It also helps to prevent mental illnesses such as depression, bipolar disorder and schizophrenia. Omega-3 fatty acids help maintain the proper functioning of dopamine and serotonin signaling systems in the brain. Both dopamine and serotonin levels, and the signaling system of those hormones, are believed to contribute to the occurrence of depression, bipolar disorder and schizophrenia. Therefore, Omega-3 fatty acids may help to regulate those hormones and lessen the symptoms of these severe mental illnesses. Combined with typical drug therapy, fish oil high in Omega-3 fatty acids has been shown to help regulate the moods of those suffering from these three illnesses.”

So as you can see, fish oil truly is a wonder drug, except it’s not really a drug. It comes from food. Do we really need a prescription for it? I don’t think so. I do think we all need to take fish oil daily. It is one of the few supplements that is PROVEN to do something positive.

My recommendations – buy a high quality, name-brand fish oil and take it. Every day. If your health insurance will pay for a prescription, good for you. I’m pretty sure mine won’t!

I’m a little ticked off by this, I know it shouldn’t bother me, but the drug companies will fast-track a drug for profit with NO REGARD for your health or safety, just their profits. Now they are on to something good and time will tell if they get fish oil regulated by the government.

You never know, maybe some day in the future you won’t be able to buy fish oil without a prescription, ensuring their profits go higher.

I’ll get off my soapbox now.

C J Murphy MFS, C-ISSN