Side Effects Of Taking Fish Oil

Generally fish oil is well tolerated and has more positive effects than negative. While it is a ‘natural’ product this doesn’t necessarily mean you should go crazy and take massive amounts of it! Keep informed about what is fact and what is fiction:

WHY AM I GETTING FISHY BURPS AND FEEL HORRIBLE AFTER TAKING FISH OIL?

If you experience repeat (burping) or a bad taste, your supplement may be rancid (oxidized) (see here for how to check if it is a good quality source) or your body may not be manufacturing enough lipase, the digestive enzyme our bodies make to digest fats and oils. If you haven’t ingested fish oils for a long time, it might take a week or so for your body to adjust and make more of this enzyme to digest fats and oils. Taking fish oil with food, especially fat, can also be helpful to digestion.

DOES FISH OIL CONTAIN MERCURY?

Raw fish oils contain environmental toxins like mercury that accumulate in fish during their life spans, but these toxins can be virtually eliminated with the use of high quality raw materials and advanced distillation technologies. Nordic Naturals fish oils are molecularly distilled, utilizing an enzymatic process that removes potential environmental toxins (such as heavy metals, dioxins, PCBs, etc.). Independent laboratory testing confirms the removal of PCBs, heavy metals, and dioxins from our oils.

– Full reports can be found on the IFOS website HERE

WILL FISH OIL OR EFAs INTERFERE WITH MY MEDICAL CONDITION OR MEDICATIONS I AM TAKING?

Research has shown safety in subjects taking antiplatelet and anticoagulant medication up to 6.9 g omega-3 per day (1). Always get your health professional to review medications and supplements on a regular basis.

WILL I NEED TO TAKE VITAMIN E WITH FISH OIL?

While we cannot speak for other brands, Nordic Naturals uses vitamin E in the all of their products to ensure stability and is used as a natural preservative. Therefore it is not necessary to take a vitamin E supplements alongside your Nordic Naturals fish oil.

ARE THE VITAMIN A LEVELS IN NORDIC NATURALS COD LIVER OIL SAFE?

There has been some concern recently that cod liver oil has high levels of vitamin A, but this does not apply to Nordic Naturals products. This concern stems from the fact that almost all cod liver oil products on the market are supplemented with added vitamin A (natural or synthetic) because many so-called cod liver oil products are not actually made from cod! Many brands use fish body oil (from species such as pollock or haddock) as a less expensive source of oil, and then add vitamin A and D to mimic cod liver oil. This practice is allowed because the international production of cod liver oil is regulated by only one rule—the final product must match the specific EPA ratio (EPA to DHA) found in cod liver oil. These practices are not applicable to the Nordic Naturals brand and never have been. Nordic Naturals have always used 100% wild Arctic cod in the CLO formulas, which have consequently always had low, healthy levels of naturally occurring, fat-soluble vitamin A. They have never used fish body oils or any synthetic additives of any kind in our CLO. Nordic Naturals CLO typically averages 40 mcg* of vitamin A per serving, which falls in the low range compared to other manufacturers’ products that can contain more than 1500 mcg per serving.

WHAT ALLERGENS ARE PRESENT IN NORDIC NATURALS FISH OILS?

Fish Allergy

In theory, fish proteins should be effectively removed in processing. However, it is certainly possible for fish oils to have small traces of protein. So unless you have an allergy to the fish protein it will be fine to consume.

Soy Allergens

Most of the products contain vitamin E derived from highly refined soybean oil. As many soy allergy sufferers know, soy allergies result from exposure to soy proteins. Nordic Naturals ensures that the vitamin E, verified by both a traditional analytical method and by Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA), contains either no soy proteins or undetectable levels of protein. Because of this, it is confident to say that individuals allergic to soy can safely take the products.

Strawberry

The natural strawberry flavouring is NOT derived from strawberry or any other berry fruit, but rather from a combination of essential oils, which create an aroma perceived as strawberry flavour.

Lemon

The natural lemon and orange flavouring is derived from natural rind of the fruit. Some people do have sensitivities to amines and if this is a concern, then the flavour should be avoided.

Alternatives

The best choice for highly sensitive people would be to take the unflavoured products (Baby DHA,Unflavoured Cod Liver Oil and Prenatal DHA).

CAN FISH OIL BE TAKEN WITH OTHER SUPPLEMENTS?

Yes! EFAs and fish oil can be taken with a wide variety of supplements—they are extremely well tolerated, natural, health promoting, and safe to use every day

HOW MUCH IODINE IS IN ULTIMATE OMEGA?

Nearly all of the iodine naturally present in fish is removed during our purification process. Test results show levels of iodine in Ultimate Omega to be typically 0.5–1.5 mcg/g, and not more than 2.0 mcg/g. For reference, the current Recommended Dietary Allowance for iodine is 150 mcg/g for adult men and women and 90 mcg/d for children over 1 year of age.

References:

1. Weitz D, Weintraub H, Fisher E, Schwartzbard AZ. Fish Oil for the Treatment of Cardiovascular Disease. Cardiology in review. 2010;18(5):258-263. doi:10.1097/CRD.0b013e3181ea0de0.

*Micrograms (mcg) for Vitamin A represent the Retinol Activity Equivalent amount of Vitamin A.