There\u2019s a few factors that contribute to high-quality fish oil supplements, including transparency, purity, freshness, form, minimal additives, and sustainability. John especially recommends looking at brands who \u201cspecialize in the processing or manufacturing of fish oil, demonstrate that they value quality products, and are considerate of the environment or fishing in a sustainable way.\u201d<\/p>\n
EPA + DHA Content<\/p>\n
\u201cFish oil should always have the specific amounts of EPA and DHA listed on the ingredient label,\u201d says John. \u201cIf it doesn\u2019t, do not purchase that fish oil.\u201d Your health goals could also help determine what percentage of EPA or DHA you want. \u201cTypically, if you\u2019re looking for cognitive support, a fish oil with more DHA is preferred,\u201d says John. \u201cIf you\u2019re wanting more of a general health or anti-inflammatory effect, then more EPA is suggested.\u201d Ultimately if your body is lacking in these fats, either will be beneficial, she adds.<\/p>\n
Purity and Freshness<\/p>\n
\u201cThe key factor of good fish oil is one that doesn\u2019t have a fishy odor,\u201d says John. \u201cIt may sound counterintuitive, but just like quality fish, fish oil should not smell bad.\u201d A strong odor indicates that the fish oil hasn\u2019t been processed well; that there\u2019s been oxidation in the production process, or that it hasn\u2019t been stored properly. \u201cA good sign of a good fish oil is that the brand has a product option that\u2019s also sold in liquid form,\u201d says John. \u201cIt\u2019s hard to hide poor quality fish oil if it\u2019s in liquid form and not in a capsule.\u201d<\/p>\n
You also want to check for third-party testing to ensure clean, safe, high-quality supplements. The supplement industry is widely unregulated so third-party testing is a first line of defense to evaluate what you\u2019re putting in your body. Shapiro recommends looking for certifications like IFOS (International Fish Oil Standards), NSF (National Sanitation Foundation), and USP (United States Pharmacopeia).<\/p>\n
Form<\/p>\n
Fish oil supplements can come in a few different forms\u2014both natural and processed\u2014which can affect the form of the fatty acids. \u201cAccording to research<\/a>, triglyceride or re-esterified triglyceride forms of omega-3s are better absorbed than ethyl esters,\u201d says Shapiro. It\u2019s also worth noting that ethyl esters are more likely<\/a> to go rancid and oxidize than fish oil in triglyceride forms.<\/p>\n Minimal Additives<\/p>\n Unnecessary additives and ingredients can also tamper a supplement\u2019s effectiveness. \u201cAvoid supplements with artificial colors, fillers, and added sugars,\u201d says Shapiro.<\/p>\n Sustainability<\/p>\n John rates sustainability up there in things to look for. \u201cSupplements that are Friend of the Sea certified or meet IFOS (International Fish Oil Standards) guidelines are going to be higher quality,\u201d she says. If sustainability is top of mind for you, Shapiro recommends looking for brands certified by the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) for options that are better for the planet.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"There\u2019s a few factors that contribute to high-quality fish oil supplements, including transparency, purity, freshness, form, minimal additives,…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":259026,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[61],"tags":[4878,3357,14125,30743,9037,97,269,3358,520,51742,4880,777],"class_list":{"0":"post-259025","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-nutrition","8":"tag-_commerce","9":"tag-_sensitivecontent","10":"tag-_seo","11":"tag-_syndication_noshow","12":"tag-beauty","13":"tag-health","14":"tag-nutrition","15":"tag-onecolumn","16":"tag-shopping","17":"tag-storytypecategory-guide-comparison","18":"tag-textabovecenterfullbleed","19":"tag-web"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/259025","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=259025"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/259025\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/259026"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=259025"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=259025"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=259025"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}