What is the Deal With Fish Oil?

Experts debate the value of supplements. Our guest speaker, Bill Gifford, mentioned that most supplements are snake oil. But another oil seems to be very popular; fish oil.

The omega-3 fatty acids inside fish oil are considered a reliable firewall against coronary issues, and many people take fish oil supplements daily to help keep themselves healthy, or so they believe.

But there are two problems with fish oil. One is the purity of the oil itself, and the other, more surprisingly, are the questions surrounding whether or not fish oil works at all.

The first problem, according to this video, is that a lot of over-the-counter fish oil either contain far less oil than they promote, or that the oil itself has been oxidized. And oxidization not only leads to a less effective oil, but it actually becomes rancid and could in fact be more harmful for you, according to multiple studies.

The biggest issue? When looking at studies, there is no compelling evidence that fish oil supplements actually do anything positive. When looking at the research about fish oil supplements, little to no proof exists that it helps cardiac health or prevents heart attacks. The omega-3 fatty acids may help the heart, but it seems that those must come from fish, not just  a fish oil pill?

So does that mean you should toss these pills in the trash? We’re not scientists, and we wouldn’t want to tell you to do anything that contradicts what your doctor may tell you to do. But we’re digging up new fish recipes and tossing out our own vials of fish oil supplements.