If you are a consumer of supplements, you know that out there all of them are not created equal. The same goes for fish oil. There are probably thousands of brands out there and making a decision on which one is best for you can be confusing. Pharmaceutical grade fish oil is the type for you! To start with, the structure of molecules that constitute the fish oil is the one that determines the purity and concentration of the fish oil that you’re getting. There are different types of fish oil structures, each with the Omega 3 fatty acid chains linked differently and at different concentrations:
1. Cod liver oil – this is the lowest quality of fish oil that you can get. It’s made from the livers of cod fish, and has the lowest concentration of Omega 3 fatty acids – about 500 Mg per serving. It’s also the most like to have contaminants like mercury. This is not to say that it’s not beneficial, only that with all the pollution today, its getting harder and harder to find a cod liver oil as pure as you would in the past.
2. Health-food grade fish oil – This is from the tissues of oily fish. It can be from a single type of fish, or from several different species. It’s typically made from larger fish! This is relevant because fish size is a determinant as to just how much contamination a fish may have. Small fish like sardines and anchovies have a short lifespan and are therefore not able to accumulate much contamination. With health-food grade fish oil, check to see what fish it has come from. The larger the fish, the longer it lived and the longer it was exposed to contaminants. You’ll get a lot of it made from salmon, and there are some brands that have been distilled to remove cholesterol. Regular fish concentrate falls under this category too.
A single serving will contains about 300 Mg of Omega 3 fatty acids, and if it’s a concentrate, about 500 Mg.
3. Pharmaceutical grade fish oil - It’s the best fish oil that you can get. It has the highest concentration of Omega 3 fatty acids and is also the purest in form. It’s new in the market, having been introduced to counter the fear of fish oil having contaminants.
It generally starts off as health food grade fish oil, but is distilled into smaller amounts rich in omega 3 fatty acids. It takes about 100 gallons of health food grade fish oil to get a gallon of pharmaceutical grade fish oil. The fish oil is then combined in a 2:1 ratio of EPA and DHA so that when these 2 components get into the body, they can work together for maximum benefit.
It is also, because of the distillation process, extremely low in contamination if at all. It’s the safest to take and with it, you can be sure that all possible contaminants that could eventually cause you ill health have been taken out.
Because of the concentration of the Omega 3 fatty acids, you will also get much more per serving – about 600Mg.
Pharmaceutical grade fish oil is new and hard to find, but is worth the search. It will also cost you more, but once again it’s worth every penny. Consider the manufacturing process it goes through, and also what amounts of regular fish oil are required just to give you a single fish pill or supplement.
When you look at the benefits, they far outweigh the cost and the time you may have to spend trying to get a good supplier of pharmaceutical grade fish oil. It also tastes better and will cause no gastric distress as you may experience with regular fish oil sometimes.
There are numerous benefits of taking fish oils and it could be a turning point for your health once you incorporate them into your diet. Remember that just like any other supplement, it’s something that you take every day. You want to avoid contaminants as much as possible. In whatever form you may want to take it, make sure to go for pharmaceutical grade fish oil.