Is fish oils safe ?
While fish oils are becoming popular as a heart healthy omega-3 supplement, many people are concerned about the long term side effects. This article discusses various potential side effects of fish oil in the short term as well as long term.
I hate medication. No matter what, I like to avoid any kind of medication even when I am really sick. The primary reason behind this is, I strongly believe every medication will have some or other kind of side effects in the long term, even if the research reports produced by the medicine manufacturer show otherwise. I just don't trust those reports. (But this does not mean I won't take any medication at all. If there are no other options, I do take medication, but I always had a feeling in the back of my mind that it is not good for me.)
The same is true for any kind of health supplement as well. I believe the nutrients and vitamins should come through the organic food you eat and not from any supplements we eat.Fish Oils supplements - is it necessary ?
So far, I was against taking fish oil supplements & omega-3 for the same reason I mentioned above. However, my high cholesterol levels made me think otherwise now.
Here is my current situation: I have elevated cholesterol level. Doctor suggested me to take 10mg Lipitor everyday. I tried it few few months and I could bring my cholesterol level to normal.
Then I thought if 10mg Lipitor can reduce my cholesterol, I should be able to do the same by changing my food habbits and life style. So, I made some serious efforts to eat heart healthy, low cholesterol food along with 30 minutes of exercise everyday. I went for blood test after 8 weeks and unfortunately, my theory did not work out. My cholesterol levels was high again.
I was not ready to give up. I learned that I cannot completely eliminate the use of Lipitor, but I wanted to reduce the intake. So, I discussed with my doctor and decided to take the Lipitor in half quantity (5mg per day). Also, I decided to take a low amount of Fish Oil supplement everyday.
That decision made me start my research on Fish Oils. I did not want to simply buy the cheap Fish oils in the market, which provide some amount of Omega-3 along with many other things like Mercury, Lead etc. I quickly learnt that many cheap fish oils in the market contain certain level of contamination.
While Fish Oil itself do not have any major side effects, the toxins, pesticides, PCBs etc contained in many Fish Oils can be dangerous for us. Research shows that several major brands of fish oils are not really purified. It is very important to choose the right Fish Oil which contain lowest level of contamination.
Purification of Fish Oil
Most of the fish living in natural environment are contaminated with mercury, PCBs and pesticides. Fish Oil is made from fish, so obviously those contamination get into the fish oil. It is the purification process that remove the contamination from fish oils.
Is Fish Oil safe?
Ultra purified fish oils are safer than natural fish since they go through an ultra purification process which remove most of the contamination. Even though fish is a healthy food, the high level of contamination make it bit risky for excessive use. Ultra purified fish oils do not have this problem, at the same offers the benefits of eating fish.