By: Dr. Barry Sears
Unfortunately, all fish oils are inherently contaminated with toxins. These toxins significantly degrade the tremendous health benefits of the long-chain omega-3 fatty acids in the fish oil. For years, the supplement industry assumed that the consumer was not sophisticated enough to ask the probing questions concerning the quality of a finished fish oil product. Fortunately, this has all changed with the introduction of the International Fish Oil Standards (IFOS) 5-Star Testing Program.
The IFOS program was set up as an independent, third-party, university-supported testing program to ascertain the purity and concentration of fish oils using the most sophisticated instrumentation in the world. This is your only guarantee of quality and performance. However, understanding the IFOS Consumer Report requires a little education.
Recently the Council for Responsible Nutrition (CRN) established working standards for the health food industry. These purity standards should be considered the lowest grade for a fish oil product that is suitable for human consumption. However, some manufacturers, such as Zone Labs, abide by a much more stringent standard of purity. For the first time, the IFOS Consumer Report allows you to quickly determine the true unbiased quality of any fish oil product.
The 5-Star System
The easiest way to determine if the fish oil you are taking is a high-quality ultra-refined oil is to look for its star rating. If a fish oil passes the most basic CRN ratings, it basically gets one star for simply showing up. That’s fine for a lower-grade, health-food store oil, but not for a higher quality oil. Here’s what an educated consumer should look for:
EPA and DHA concentration
The first thing to look for is the concentration of the active long-chain fatty acids (EPA and DHA) responsible for providing the health benefits of fish oil. The higher the concentration of EPA and DHA, the less oil you have to take to obtain the health benefits. This is also means the fewer contaminants you consume in the process. To be a true ultra-refined fish oil, at least 60 percent of the fatty acids must consist of EPA and DHA. If so, the IFOS awards that oil another star.
PCB levels
Although production of PCBs was banned in the 1970s, they are almost indestructible and are known carcinogens. Once they get into your body, they are difficult to remove. Although the CRN standard for PCBs is 90 parts per billion (ppb), an ultra-refined fish oil concentrate should have a much lower level of 45 ppb or less. The IFOS program awards another star for any oil that meets this lowered level of PCBs.
Dioxins
Dioxins were the active component in Agent Orange that was used to defoliate jungles during the Vietnam War. Like PCBs, dioxins are also nearly indestructible and are known neurotoxins. To obtain another IFOS star, an oil must have less than 1 part per trillion (ppt) of these contaminants.
Mercury
Of all the toxins in fish oil, mercury may be the easiest to remove. This is why the IFOS program does not award a star for lowered mercury levels. However, the IFOS testing equipment can measure mercury levels to a much lower concentration than is generally reported by health-food grade fish oil producer. Any fish oil that contains more than 10 ppb of mercury should be considered unfit for human consumption.
Oxidation
Fish oils are extraordinarily prone to oxidation. The risk of oxidation is magnified even more during the encapsulation and liquid-filling process. This is why it is important to measure the levels of oxidation in the actual container the consumer uses, not in the drum from the manufacturer. There are three measures of oxidation: Peroxides, aldehydes, and ketones. The first stage of oxidation of any oil is the formation of peroxides, which then break down into aldehydes and ketones. The standard used by the CRN is a mixture of all three known as TOTOX or total oxidation. If the TOTOX levels of a fish oil are less than 13 meq/kg, then the IFOS program awards another star to the oil.
Since all fish oils are produced from natural sources, there are variations from batch to batch. This is no different than the variation of grapes that gives rise to different qualities of wine. The greater the number of stars that an oil receives from the IFOS program, the better the “vintage” and greater the health benefits.
Lot Number
Of course, if you are taking a fish oil whose lot number has not been posted on the IFOS web site, then it is truly “buyer beware” since it strongly suggests the marketer has something to hide from the consumer. Ultimately, your health is determined by your knowledge of the quality of every batch of fish oil that you take.
For more information, go to www.ifosprogram.com.