Fish Oil

A flood of scientific evidence about fish oil points to a startling conclusion that taking high-dose fish oils, which are very rich in Omega-3 Fatty Acids, helps support a healthy heart, a healthy brain, a healthy immune system, healthy joint movement, healthy kidneys and much more.

Each grade of fish oil is distinguished from the other by its purity and concentration of long-chain omega-3 fatty acids. Crude fish oils are the least expensive and most will likely contain some levels of contaminants including PCBs, DDT and organic mercury.

When choosing a high dose fish oil remember that knowledge is power and not all fish oils are manufactured the same. Some fish oils may even be dangerous when taken in high doses.

With many choices of fish oil available, and with so many pro and con opinions written about each, it is easy to become confused. So when it comes time for you to choose a fish oil make sure you do your homework and choose wisely - your health depends on it.

When choosing a fish oil that you will be ingesting in high doses it is crucial that you choose one that is pure and free of contaminants, toxins, and mercury. How can you, the consumer, tell the difference?

Currently there are three grades of fish oil available on the market today:

• Cod Liver Oil

• Health-food grade fish oil, and

• Pharmaceutical-grade fish oil

Cod Liver Oil

Cod Liver Oil is the lowest quality fish oil and like the name implies it is manufactured from the livers of Cod fish. It has the lowest concentration of long-chain omega-3 fatty acids and contains the highest levels of contaminants such as organic mercury, PCB’s, and DDT. Cod Liver Oil may also contain a high level of Vitamin A.

Cod Liver Oil is not recommended for high dose consumption. A typical serving of Cod Liver Oil contains 500 mg. of long-chain omega-3 fatty acids.

Health-food Grade Fish Oils

Most health-food grade fish oils are manufactured from fish body oils. Fish oils can be manufactured from a single fish species or from several fish species.

Fish size and their relative rank in the food chain can help us understand the level of contaminants that may be found in health-food grade fish oils. Small fish, such as sardines and anchovies, don’t live long so are less prone to accumulate environmental pollutants. Larger fish, such as salmon and mackerel, are predatory species that live longer so they could contain higher levels of pollutants. If the label says it comes from a particular species of fish, such as salmon, then you can be sure that it probably is health-food grade fish oil.

A slightly more purified type of health-food grade fish oil is available which includes oils that have been subjected to a limited amount of molecular distillation to remove some of the cholesterol. These types of fish oils are usually labeled as “cholesterol-free”.

“Fish Oil Concentrate” is yet another type of health-food grade fish oil. Fish oil concentrates consist of ethyl esters of the fish oil that have been subjected to fractional cooling. The solidified saturated fats are removed leaving behind a more concentrated solution of long-chain omega-3 fatty acids. A typical one-gram capsule of thermally fractionated health-food grade fish oil contains up to 500 mg. of long-chain omega-3 fatty acids.

Typical health-food grade fish oils may contain varying amounts of contaminants. In addition, the fractional cooling method does not necessarily remove all the PCB’s or the long-chain monoene fatty acids that may give rise to gastric distress. Due to the varying amounts of contaminants that could still be contained in health-food grade, it is questionable as to whether it is safe at high levels. A typical one-gram capsule of health-food grade fish oil contains approximately 300 mg. of long-chain omega-3 fatty acids.

Pharmaceutical-grade Fish Oil — the newest generation of fish oil.

Pharmaceutical-grade fish oils start with thermally fractionated health-food grade fish oils. These oils are then distilled, using a highly complex refining technology, into fractions rich in long-chain omega-3 fatty acids. According to manufacturers, it typically takes about 100 gallons of health-food grade fish oil to make one gallon of pharmaceutical-grade fish oil.

Individual fractions are then combined to provide a 2:1 ratio of Eicosapentaenoic Acid (EPA) and Docosahexaenoic Acid (DHA) for the finished fish oil product. Scientific studies conducted with pharmaceutical-grade fish oils that used a 2:1 ratio of EPA and DHA reported significant clinical benefits.

Pharmaceutical-grade fish oils are exceptionally low in long-chain monoenes, PCB’s and other pollutants. Pharmaceutical-grade fish oils are believed to be the safest to take in high doses. A typical one-gram capsule of pharmaceutical-grade fish oil will have a minimum of 600 mg. of long-chain omega-3 fatty acids.

Pharmaceutical-grade fish oils are a fairly new product and a good-quality source may be difficult to find. In addition, pharmaceutical-grade fish oils definitely cost more - sometimes twice as much. This increased cost is an outcome of the complex process used to remove impurities. Each step in the refining process adds additional production costs.

For instance, OmegaRx developed by Dr. Barry Sears and recommended in his book, The OmegaRx Zone - The Miracle of the New High Dose Fish Oil, starts with health food grade fish oil which then goes through nine additional steps to make it pharmaceutical grade quality. Pharmaceutical-grade fish oils generally taste better and the amount of long-chain monoenes, which cause gastric distress, are dramatically reduced.

For more information about where to purchase Dr. Barry Sears’ OmegaRx Fish Oil Supplement, please visit http://www.fishoilzone.biz or http://www.omega3zone.biz or call To Your Health at 503-244-5941.

About The Author

Bev Storer is a writer and researcher in the field of nutrition and nutritional supplements. To learn more about pharmaceutical-grade fish oil, visit her website or e-mail her directly at info@fishoilzone.biz.

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Vitamin E is an absolutely vital nutrient in your body, but it probably can’t do half the things you heard it can.

What does vitamin E do? To begin, it is an antioxidant. It tames dangerous free radicals and helps prevent blood clots and blockages in coronary arteries. Research points to its ability to reduce the risk of chronic diseases, such as heart attacks and some cancers.

Vitamin E is also believed to slow the aging process and to help nerve conduction. Most importantly, it works to enhance and even protect vitamin C and Vitamin A.

There is also promising research that vitamin E might help prevent or slow the onset of cataracts in the eyes.

Vitamin E has been touted as a cure for just about everything but a broken heart. I am sure that’s coming, though. Here are just a few of the diseases and conditions vitamin E has been credited with curing or preventing:

• Parkinson’s disease

• Infertility in both men and women

• Alzheimer’s disease

• Hepatitis

• eye tissue inflammation

• fibromylagia

• hair loss

• PMS (pre-menstrual syndrome)

• heavy menstruation

• healing wounds

• diabetes

• atherosclerosis

• menopause

• osteoarthritis

• even restless leg syndrome!

It might well prove that vitamin is helpful in some of these and other conditions, but probably not in many or even most of them.

As with many vitamins, there is a raging debate over how much vitamin E you need. The US recommended daily allowance (RDA) is 8-10 milligrams per day. But most people in the nutrition field believe that to capture the long-term benefits, people need 10 to 20 times that quantity, which is well short of the maximum recommended 1,000 milligrams.

Vitamin E is found in many foods in small quantities. The good news is that almost everyone gets sufficient vitamin E to avoid a deficiency, with a few exceptions noted below. The bad news is that most people do not get the RDA. This is definitely a vitamin that should be supplemented.

Be careful about what supplements you choose, since the synthetic version of vitamin E is not even half effective as in its natural form. Look for nutritional supplements containing natural vitamin E, preferably in liquid form.

People on low fat diets need supplements the most, since fats and oils are the largest sources of vitamin E. Nuts and green, leafy vegetables are also good sources, as are egg yolks and liver. So are whole grains.

Vitamin E probably will never cure your broken heart, nor live up to half of the claims people make about it. But it is an important vitamin for maintaining good health and it is needed in quantities above what most people take in their diet.

About The Author

David Leonhardt runs The Liquid Vitamin Supplements Store: http://www.vitamin-supplements-store.net

Learn more about vitamin E: http://www.vitamin-supplements-store.net/vitamins/vitamin-e.html

Or read up on other nutrition information: http://www.vitamin-supplements-store.net/nutrition-information.html

Info@thehappyguy.com

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There is no doubt that Omega 3’s can not only help your heart and joints but it will also help your brain. Most people are aware of this, but do the benefits of Omega 3’s apply across
the board for all types of Omega 3’s? There are now many Companies in the world market today trying to capitalize on the Omega 3 ‘boom’ with such a wide range of products and so
many claims that it is hard for the consumer to sift out fact from fiction.

The purpose of today’s newsletter is to try and concisely as possible give you the facts about Omega 3.

I will try to explain the most important ones by dealing with each of them individually.

Important Point # 1

Your prime objective for consuming Omega 3 should be to get DHA (Docosahexaenoic Acid) into your body. The scientific evidence supporting the benefits of DHA is now overwhelming.
It is much more important than EPA (Eicosapentaenoic Acid) which is the major Omega 3 component of most fish oils.

Important Point # 2

Not all Omega 3’s will provide you with DHA and EPA. This is because these essential fatty acids are not present in a lot of Omega 3 products. For example, ground flax seed is an
excellent oil for certain uses and contains Omega 3’s but does not actually contain any DHA or EPA at all. Instead it contains alpha linolenic acid which your body has to convert
to DHA and EPA.

In many people, particularly the elderly this conversion process is very inefficient. To give you an idea, it is estimated that most adults would have to consume 10 - 40 grams
of flaxseed oil to produce just 0.2 grams of DHA.

So, if you want to get the proven benefits of DHA don’t rely on getting your Omega 3’s from vegetable oils such as flaxseed. Note: There is however now some products being
produced from algae which contain good levels of DHA and do not require the body to convert the ALA to the DHA. But, they are still not readily available and they are expensive.

Important Point # 3

The best source of DHA is from fish oil. However, there are
some drawbacks with many fish oils:

1. The amount of DHA is low in most fish oils. A typical level is 12% DHA and 18% EPA. The popular ‘salmon‘ oils (which are not really salmon) are usually of the 12/18 type.

2. Many oils on the market today are from questionable
sources and some have high levels of heavy metals or other
contaminants such as PCB’s. To ensure that you don’t
ingest these contaminants, either use oils which have been
molecularly distilled, or are from impeccable sources with
a reliable certificate of analysis. This basically rules
out any oil which is processed from fish caught in the
Northern Hemisphere.

3. Most fish oils are of the triglyceride form which does not
easily pass through the cell membranes. (More on this
later)

Important Point # 4

Some suppliers of fish oil claim that it does not matter that the EPA is higher than the DPA because the body will convert part of the EPA to DPA. This is indeed true but like the
conversion of ALA to DHA the percentage of conversion is very low. This is due in part to the high consumption of Omega 6 in the typical Western diet.

Enzymes needed for the conversion are in ’short supply’ in the bodies of those people who have a reasonably high level of Omega 6 intake (via vegetable oils). This is because the
enzymes needed are ‘used up’ in having to deal with the processing of Omega 6 oils.

As a result, the conversion in most people is quite negligible which further supports ingesting the DHA directly.

Important Point # 5

As I indicated earlier most fish oils are in the triglyceride forms. A triglyceride consists of 3 fatty acids attached to a glycerol backbone. It does not pass easily through the cell membrane as it is changed. It also requires two enzyme steps to ‘release’ its fatty acids. Sometimes because of the structure of the triglycerides the fatty acids are not released but rather stay attached to the glycerol backbone.

In contrast, if the oil is esterified during the concentration and purification processes the resulting substance can easily enter the body’s cell membranes. The esterified molecule has
no charge and only requires one enterase enzyme to release the fatty acid. (DHA). This enables the body to use it as an immediate energy source, or store it for later use.

In Summary:

To receive the many benefits of DHA you have to consider
ensuring that you do as follows:

1. Find a source of fish oil that is high in DHA or
alternatively be prepared to take much higher doses of
conventional fish oil.

2. Ensure that the fish oil you use is molecularly distilled.

3. Try to find the oil in the Ester form for better
bio-availability.

In conclusion, try to find a quality fish oil supplement that meets these three criteria and your benefits will far outweigh the cost.

Warren Matthews is the Chairman of Xtend Life Natural Products, the manufacturer of a pure molecularly distilled fish oil ester with NO CONTAMINANTS and with exceptionally high levels of DHA! It is caught in the pristine Southern Ocean and is naturally free of contaminants.

XTEND-LIFE’s ‘Omega 3 / DHA Fish Oil Esters’ is available at
http://healthybody.xtend-life.com/default.asp?id=270030

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