I've been reading about the benefits of fish oil, and want to start taking it. I'm kind of confused about what to look for when picking what to buy. The ones I liked (based pretty much solely on price) say they are 1,000mg EPA=180mg DHA=120mg Omega 3=340mg other fatty acids=40mg. A while ago a trainer told me to take 4-5g of fish oils, and from what I've been reading, seems to be what others take as well. With the info shown, would those be good to take or is there something in particular I should look for when choosing? If I do take those, can I just take 4 or 5 of these capsules in the morning with my breakfast shake, or do I have to do it throughout the day? Thanks in advance.

I've been taking Triomega concentrated fish oil for several months. I've been taking them more for the "brain food" aspect than anything else. I chose that partiular brand because it A) advertises a product that removes mercury during purification and B) because of the simplicity -- 1 soft gel cap in the morning with chow.

Each softgel cap contains 500mg omega-3 fatty acids. I coulda sworn that it also contained omega-6 fatty acids but I'm not at home at the moment and can't check the label. I'm sure if a person can "overdose" on fish oil but from what I've read about it, the more the better for a healthy heart.

It'd probably be a good idea to chose a brand that is rich both in omega-3 as well as omega-6 fatty acids.

If your diet is heavy in fish then you'll also be getting a good dose of fish oil per week.

I've been reading about the benefits of fish oil, and want to start taking it. I'm kind of confused about what to look for when picking what to buy. The ones I liked (based pretty much solely on price) say they are 1,000mg EPA=180mg DHA=120mg Omega 3=340mg other fatty acids=40mg. A while ago a trainer told me to take 4-5g of fish oils, and from what I've been reading, seems to be what others take as well. With the info shown, would those be good to take or is there something in particular I should look for when choosing? If I do take those, can I just take 4 or 5 of these capsules in the morning with my breakfast shake, or do I have to do it throughout the day? Thanks in advance.


With fish oils your looking for the omega 3 powerhouse EPA/DHA - I would take a minimum of 6g of fish oil per day. You can take it all one time or spread it out, considering its a small dose.

Personally i take 12grams but i'm 220lb.

Here's an article from John Berardi
http://www.johnberardi.com/articles/reviews/supplements.htm#4

Any over the counter fish oil product should do, John stated it himself on another forum.

As with pretty much all nutrients, spreading them out throughout the day is best. It's likely that your body will have a need for those fatty acids later in the day, so it's far more beneficial to take a capsule or two here and there throughout the day rather than all of them at once.

Tribul, 500mg is a ridiculously low amount of EFA's to be taking. I don't know what the serving size and directions are on the product you got, but most fish oil capsules are at least 1000mg each, and most products I've seen advise taking about 3 a day. Search around here, bb.com, or any other bodybuilding forum and you'll see that 6g or more a day is pretty darn common.

Yikes, I had no idea folks were meant to consume that much fish oil a day. Time to stock on 'em then :) . Thanks for the info, Glaive.

I usually just get these (http://www.bulknutrition.com/?products_id=44) and use about 6g a day. Only $3.25

Yikes, I had no idea folks were meant to consume that much fish oil a day. Time to stock on 'em then :) . Thanks for the info, Glaive.


Well, 1 6oz serving of Salmon has ~16g of fat in it. OK, it's not 'concentrated' but that is still 4.3g of omega 3's, 2g each of EPA/DHA.

So 6g fish oil pils/day (340mg omega-3) is something like eating 1 small serving of salmon 3x/week. Not exactly outragious.

Personally I think the liquid is most cost effective. Carlsons 500ml ~ $35, 100 4g servings, each with 800mg EPA, 500mg DHA. But I havent looked really hard. When my supply runs out I'm going to try the new Biotest fish oil - looks good at a decent price.

I shouldn't matter when you take it. Fish oil (well the EPA/DHA) is not 'used' like protein or carbs - the omega 3's are incorporated into your cells. It takes about 20-40 days before you stabilize. So, for instance you could stop taking the fish oil for a week, start again with no big deal. Or just eat 3-5 meals of fatty fish/week or take fish oil every day or every meal etc... same difference.

Hort, thanks for pointing me to those capsules, thats an excellent prize, the ones I was getting locally were $9.00 for 100. I was going to order some other stuff from there anyway, so that saves me on shipping.


Nedge - what do you mean when you say stabilize?

Also, if I take fish oil, then I no longer need to take flaxseed oil, right?

Thanks for all the replies.

It may be a bit more expensive, but I also like to make sure the oils are pharmaceutical grade and certified free of toxins. Also, I get the oils made from smaller fish like sardines and anchovies vs. the larger fish like salmon because they are lower on the food chain and don't concentrate toxins as much. e.g. big fish eat little fish

Nedge - what do you mean when you say stabilize?



Perhaps not a good choice of words on my part. Here are some likes to more info, you might also want to search around a bit to learn how the body uses omega 3's and why they are important.

http://www.wholehealthmd.com/refshelf/substances_view/1,1525,992,00.html

http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=nutrient&dbid=84

So if you change your diet the body take a while to incorporate those changes into cell membranes - that's what I meant by stabilize.