Fish Oil

PH4T · 10-08-2010 10:50am #1

I keep reading about the benefits of Fish Oils so I went over to Holland & Barrett and got some that were going for half price.

I got their Omega-3 Fish Oil 1200mg (360mg active epa/dha)

Will they do the job?

ray jay · 10-08-2010 10:52am

yes, which is just as well since you already bought them!

woozyeyes · 10-08-2010 11:18am

What are these ones like?

A stable Fish Body Oil Supplement with Natural Source Vitamin E.
Eskimo-3 is a unique, stable fish oil supplement that has not been chemically modified or processed like other fish oil products and EPA-DHA supplements. Eskimo-3 is naturally derived. It is manufactured under strict quality control with guaranteed potency, purity and quality. Natural antioxidants in Eskimo-3 provide exceptional stability.
Eskimo-3 enjoys some very special features that distinguishes it from other fish oil supplements on the market. Following are some reasons why Eskimo-3 is the only omega-3 fish oil to buy:

Eskimo-3 is free from environmental contaminants
Eskimo-3 is natural fish oil, which has not been chemically modified.
Eskimo-3 is incredibly stable
Eskimo-3 has no fishy smell or aftertaste.
Eskimo-3 comes in the convenience of either capsules or liquid.
Developed by a highly dedicated team of international scientists.

Ingredients:

Each three capsules typically contain:
Omega-3 Fatty Acids 500 mg
of which
EPA (eicosapentaenoic acid) 240 mg
DHA (docosahexaenoic acid) 160 mg
Natural Vitamin E (d-alpha tocopherol) 4.5 mg
Encapsulated with
Gelatin, glycerine, ascorbic acid, lecithin, and flavouring: lemon oil

Edwardius · 10-08-2010 12:00pm

Eskimo-3 is pricey as hell. Iherb.com sells carlson's and you get twice as much for about the same price (or you did back when the dollar was lower).

H&B caps are fine too, probably have to take a good few of them but they'll do the job.

cmyk · 10-08-2010 12:01pm

Eskimo 3 are great quality...but v. expensive

woozyeyes · 10-08-2010 1:03pm

Thanks everyone. I was wondering about the quality/ingriedients more than the price. They were €15.00. Had planned to buy another type on my.protein.uk that were recommended here but went with an impulse buy just to try them out for the first time. I knew I was probably being ripped just by the shop I was in. Not too worried though as since the take-aways and eating out at lunch time has stopped the food bill is fairley small compared to what it use to be but will go for the cheaper good quality product in future.

What exactly do you need to be checking on the ingriedients to make sure its a good quality fish oil/capsule?

Also it recommends to take 3 capsules 1-3 times daily. Any thoughts?

I Male 85kg, 6ft 2". Eat a fairly clean diet 80% time as recommeded in the stickies. Doing Stronglifts last couple of weeks and play 5 aside football. Just lost 2 stone over the last while and probably eat less than maintenance weekdays and above maintenance weekends if that makes any difference.

PH4T - Sorry for hijacking your thread. Might clear up your queries buying in future too.

mickmac · 10-08-2010 1:14pm

I'm kind of piggy backing the OP's original question too but this seems the place to be today for questions about fish oil and whatnot! so apols for the hijack and thanks for raising the topic in the first place.

I'm taking codliver oil I got in Lidl the ingredients are:

1000mg cod liver oil
210mg omega 3 oil
...
EPA 100mg
DHA 100mg

Does that seem like a worthwhile product to take? (I am innocent in the ways of omega 3 requirements other than to know that it's good for me and my mam used to give me cod liver oil when I was a kid.)

ray jay · 10-08-2010 1:27pm

the amount of DHA and EPA are what you should look for. They are the two forms of omega 3 most readily used by your body. Personally I prefer more concentrated products than that lidl one you mentioned since I don't have to take as many caps to get the same dose of omega 3

as a side note, in plant-based products that contain omega 3 you'll probably find that it's mostly in the form of ALA. Unfortunately this form is converted to EPA/DHA with a very low efficiency by your body, which makes these sources pretty poor compared to fish oil

Scuba Ste · 10-08-2010 1:28pm

Interesting question. I used to Lidl glucosamine, dirt cheap compared to most other places.

I never thought there was much difference between fish oil brands myself, I'd just get the cheapest in terms of dosage and number of tablets, have Tesco atm. I'd be interested to know whether others buy theirs because of quality differences between brands and what kind of dosage their taking.

paddytheboy · 10-08-2010 1:30pm

My brother swears by this. He makes up his own from Linseed and Flaxseed (crushed).

cmyk · 10-08-2010 2:01pm

paddytheboy wrote: »

My brother swears by this. He makes up his own from Linseed and Flaxseed (crushed).

Omega 3's from Linseed/flaxseed have to be converted to EHA/DHA and even at that are only partially converted, so not ideal.

A quick ref from bookmarks comparing supplementation of each

The Davestator · 10-08-2010 3:02pm

Fish oil is the best supplement you can take imo. However, you pay for quality big time.
Personally, I take liquid at home (as it has to be kept refridgerated) and capsules in work after each meal.
I try to get about 5-10 grams a day fish oil, which means about 12 caps after each meal, or 2 tablespoons.
As has been said, EPA & DHA are the important numbers.

Example: Eskimo fish oil has 1,400 mg of omega 3 fatty acides per 4 capsules. (600 mg EPA and 400 DHA) At €30 for 120 caps, its very expensive though.

PH4T · 10-08-2010 3:09pm

The Davestator wrote: »

Fish oil is the best supplement you can take imo. However, you pay for quality big time.
Personally, I take liquid at home (as it has to be kept refridgerated) and capsules in work after each meal.
I try to get about 5-10 grams a day fish oil, which means about 12 caps after each meal, or 2 tablespoons.
As has been said, EPA & DHA are the important numbers.

Example: Eskimo fish oil has 1,400 mg of omega 3 fatty acides per 4 capsules. (600 mg EPA and 400 DHA) At €30 for 120 caps, its very expensive though.

It says on the Holland & Barrett pack (Omega-3 Fish Oil 1200mg, 360mg active epa/dha) that you should take 1-3 capsules daily.

Are you saying that this is not nearly enough?

The Davestator · 10-08-2010 3:24pm

PH4T wrote: »

It says on the Holland & Barrett pack (Omega-3 Fish Oil 1200mg, 360mg active epa/dha) that you should take 1-3 capsules daily.

Are you saying that this is not nearly enough?

Its up to you, but as theres only 360 active, I'd take 4 or 5 times that amount. (You also have to wonder whats making up the rest of the capsule, probably, gelatin etc for the capsule, thats why the liquid gives you mjuch better value and it tastes grand most of the time.(not like cod liver oil)!
The more fat you are, the more you should take too. Take it immediately after meals

Heres some info you can take or leave

http://www.charlespoliquin.com/ArticlesMultimedia/Articles/Article/54/The_Smart_Choice_in_Fish_Oil.aspx

http://www.charlespoliquin.com/ArticlesMultimedia/Articles/Article/263/Fish_Oils_and_PCBs_The_Cost_of_Cutting_Corners.aspx

http://www.charlespoliquin.com/ArticlesMultimedia/Articles/Article/288/Fast_Results_with_Fish_Oil.aspx

Esse85 · 10-08-2010 4:15pm

The Davestator wrote: »

Fish oil is the best supplement you can take imo.

Why? Please explain.

What would the benefits be if person X took 10g's of fish oil a day and person Y didnt take any?

The Davestator · 10-08-2010 4:26pm

Esse85 wrote: »

Why? Please explain.

What would the benefits be if person X took 10g's of fish oil a day and person Y didnt take any?

The links above will give you a good idea of why but there's hundreds of studies online too. Personally, the main benefits I've noticed are; increased fat loss, less post workout doms, better sleep and increased energy. I noticed these benefits after adding fish oil to my existing supps of multi vit, glutamine, whey, magnesium, physillium husk and bcaa's.

Esse85 · 10-08-2010 5:25pm

The Davestator wrote: »

The links above will give you a good idea of why but there's hundreds of studies online too. Personally, the main benefits I've noticed are; increased fat loss, less post workout doms, better sleep and increased energy. I noticed these benefits after adding fish oil to my existing supps of multi vit, glutamine, whey, magnesium, physillium husk and bcaa's.

Hard to put that down to fish oil alone tho. Im very skeptical when it comes to handing over money for supps as I think 90% of them are a waste of money and people use them as a sort of "easy route", almost by taking certain supps they believe that now they dont have to train as hard etc, not referring to you but just the general public.

I think the supps industry is vastly over rated and its main aim is to take easy money off people that want to look and feel better but dont know any different.

Thanks for the reply though, I'm glad you are getting the benefits.

cmyk · 10-08-2010 6:12pm

Esse85 wrote: »

I think the supps industry is vastly over rated and its main aim is to take easy money off people that want to look and feel better but dont know any different.

Thanks for the reply though, I'm glad you are getting the benefits.

Though I agree with you in principal, I believe fish oils/omega 3's to be different. Fish oils are an 'essential fatty acid' and as such (in quality liquid form) is pretty pure and contains only fish oil. The 'western diet' we are now pretty dependent on contains a huge swing toward omega 6's and thus causes an imbalance between them. It's not a magic potion...you can of course get the same benefits from eating more oily fish, I doubt anyone on this forum would disagree with the fact it is better to reach your dietary 'targets' with whole food sources.

It would be worth doing a search, as there has been a lot of research on its benefits.

Inspector Coptoor · 10-08-2010 6:31pm

Esse85 wrote: »

Why? Please explain.

What would the benefits be if person X took 10g's of fish oil a day and person Y didnt take any?

fish oil has been linked to everything from cancer prevention to prevention of joint degradation.

It is a quality supplement and everyone should be taking it.

I take the myprotein Omega 3 6 9 Essential Fatty Acids.

each 500mg capsule has:
EPA - 90mg
FHA - 60mg
GLA - 90mg
Omega 9 - 8.9mg
Vit E - 8mg

on the recommended daily dose, the dosage on the tub is 2 softgels 1-2 times daily.
that would be for Joe Soap doing no physical activity.

I take 5-6 capsules 3-4 times per day.

the negative effects of fishoil are:
overconsumption WILL give a laxative effect.
high dosages will result in excessive bleeding if you get a cut so possibly not the best supplement for a fighter to take at high dosages coming into a fight.`

cmyk · 10-08-2010 7:05pm

Liam Henners257 wrote: »

each 500mg capsule has:
EPA - 90mg
FHA - 60mg
GLA - 90mg
Omega 9 - 8.9mg
Vit E - 8mg

What are DHA levels? the EPA is very low.

Inspector Coptoor · 10-08-2010 7:07pm

cmyk wrote: »

What are DHA levels? the EPA is very low.

DHA is 60mg

I made a typo there when i said FHA.

could be a bit low but thats why I take 20 of them per day.

cmyk · 10-08-2010 7:12pm

Liam Henners257 wrote: »

DHA is 60mg

I made a typo there when i said FHA.

could be a bit low but thats why I take 20 of them per day.

It probably adds up to being more expensive than 'the more expensive' brands though? Also the other 250mg is probably made up of lower grade fish oil.

Check out iherb's range of fish oils and compare prices and levels and brands.

ray jay · 10-08-2010 7:25pm

cmyk wrote: »

The 'western diet' we are now pretty dependent on contains a huge swing toward omega 6's and thus causes an imbalance between them.

just on this point, most common nuts have high levels of omega 6. Since the ratio of omega 3 to 6 is important, people should keep in mind that even moderate consumption of nuts will counteract a lot of the benefits of taking omega 3

Scuba Ste · 10-08-2010 7:30pm

cmyk wrote: »

It probably adds up to being more expensive than 'the more expensive' brands though? Also the other 250mg is probably made up of lower grade fish oil.

Check out iherb's range of fish oils and compare prices and levels and brands.

Is this the only difference between brands, the level of EPA and DHA. As in Lidl, Boots, Tesco, MyProtein, iherb are all the same quality apart from the levels of EPA/DHA.

I think I'll start upping my dosage I'd only take 2x1000mg per day and the EPA/DHA is low enough.

Transform · 10-08-2010 7:48pm

liquid fish oil is the way to go - wayy less tablets and far higher amount you can get in

cmyk · 10-08-2010 7:52pm

Scuba Ste wrote: »

Is this the only difference between brands, the level of EPA and DHA. As in Lidl, Boots, Tesco, MyProtein, iherb are all the same quality apart from the levels of EPA/DHA.

No, certainly not as far as I know, some oil is of better 'actual' quality than others due to toxins in the fish. Higher levels of EPA and in particular DHA are definitely some sort of indication though, but some oil is purified and sourced in better areas of lesser toxins. I might add that this is all purely my view from reading up on the subject. I had tons of bookmarks though I can post if you want, running out the door now, but i'll try and dig some out later.

Ag23 · 07-09-2013 7:21pm

Can anyone recommend a place in Dublin that sells Eskimo fish oil? Was in Holland and Barrett and Boots in Stephens Green but none of them sell them

kilclon · 08-09-2013 12:11am

I think Nourish have them http://www.nourish.ie/our-stores-!11-cms.html

Fish Oil

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