Are omega-3 pills that you can buy at a vitamin store have any mercury in them?
Friday, September 3rd, 2010 at
2:17 am
I just read from another question I asked that omega-3 fatty acids is good to take if your pregnant, but to be careful about mercury levels. Do omega-3 fatty acid pills have any mercury in them? Can I just have my wife take those pills instead of eating fish?
Filed under: Alternative Medicine
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Consumerlab.com tested different products, and determined that none of the ones that they tested had mercury or PCBs, unlike certain fish.
GOOD NEWS! THESE SUPPLEMENTS HAVE OMEGA-3′s WITHOUT CONTAMINANTS FOUND IN FISH! BUT SOME ARE BETTER THAN OTHERS. FIND OUT NOW!!
Omega-3 fatty acids (EPA and DHA) from fish and other marine sources may reduce the risk the heart disease, improve symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis and be useful in the prevention and treatment of many other diseases.
But two Omega-3 products failed ConsumerLab.com tests. One didn’t contain its labeled amounts. One was spoiled. However, none of the products were contaminated with mercury or PCBs— unlike some popular types of fish.
Results of 42 omega-3 oil products tested are available to help guide you in your product selection.
You need to subscribe to get all the test results and ConsumerLab.com’s valuable recommendations. In this comprehensive report, you’ll discover:
Which products failed and which passed our tests and why.
What omega-3′s can do.
How much to use.
What to consider when buying a product.
Potential side-effects.
The report is only available to subscribers. Get the full report NOW! Just click SUBSCRIBE or, if you already are a subscriber, LOG-IN now. Below is a summary with results for some of the products tested.
If you buy the ones labelled "pharmaceutical grade" any mercury has been removed. It’s less of a problem with wild pacific salmon than with "unspecified" types of salmon. Read the label: sardine and anchovy oil is inferior to salmon. Krill oil is supposed to be even better.
The general consensus among experts is that taking fish oil capsules are safer than eating fish if you want to minimize your chances of being exposed to mercury, PCBs and other toxins. And yes, omega 3s are vitally important for the health of your wife, your baby and it’s future brain development.
If you should decide to take fish oil capsules, then here are some things you can look for to improve your chances of getting a mercury-free product.
Stick with reputable brands. This is no guarantee that they’re safe but they’re safer than fly-by night companies that are here today and gone tomorrow.
Buy only fish oil supplements that tell you on the label what fish are being used. For example, it’s safer to buy fish oils made from salmon, tuna, sardines and herring than it is to buy generic "fish oils" or "marine lipids." If the product doesn’t specifically tell you what fish are being used then you have no idea whether or not they’re bottom feeders, garbage fish, sick fish or marine animals that you’re not supposed to eat.
Call the company and ask them about their product. Find out if they press the oils from the flesh only or if they squeeze the whole fish. Pressing from the flesh greatly reduces any chance of toxins plus any hidden vitamin A and D.
The next thing may be a bit of a surprise to some of you, but you should also think twice about companies that use "molecular distillation" to purify their fish. First of all, this process never removes all the heavy metals and toxins. Secondly, this purification process "oxidizes" the omega 3 oils, rendering them useless, and there’s nothing more dangerous for you than an oxidized oil.
Molecular distillation is sold to you as a benefit BUT as a consumer you need to be asking why they used toxic oils in the first place. You’re better off finding a company that tests all of their sources first and only selects those that are already toxin free. They exist out there, you just have to look for them!
For example, Salmon Oil Plus not only tests for 160+ different contaminants before they select their raw materials, they’ve also created a special process called "molecular differentiation" (not to be confused with molecular distillation), which allows them to differentiate and extract the nutritional omega 3s and leave behind the non-nutritional components like taste, odor, cholesterol, etc.
Finally, you’ll want to make sure you check the numbers on the back of each product you’re looking at. Many companies will sell you 1,000 mg – or more – of "fish oils" but only give you 1/4 to 1/3 of those as omega 3s. And omega 3s are what makes all the difference for your health – not non-omega 3 "fish oils." Many of these companies won’t tell you what the other oils are and that should be a red flag for you. Look for a product that provides only omega 3s and particularly a product that gives you all 8 members of the omega 3 family.
I hope you find this useful and wish you and your wife the healthiest pregnancy and birth possible.
I agree with your concern. Krill is a small crustacean. Because they are so small, they do not have the cumulative effect as larger fish. Krill oil has a lot of the same kinds of Omega-3 as cod liver oil. (EPA, DHA, GLA) The pills are small so she might have to take many of them. There is little danger of overdosing as you might be concerned about with cod liver oil because they do not have vitamin D. (extremely valuable vitamin in winter). From what I have read, flax oil is not a good candidate for omega-3 because it doesn’t digest in a way that makes the properties readily available to our bodies.
If you go with cod liver oil, the good brands test for mercury. The capsules are far more expensive than a bottle of oil you take with a spoon. The most recommended ones from the websites I frequent are Carlsons and Nordic Naturals. These two brands have flavored cod liver oil which mask the fishiness (but not the burp!). My personal favorite is Nordic Naturals orange flavor. For more omega-3 and vitamin D info, visit http://www.mercola.com.
Good luck and I hope she takes your advice!