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Finally, Some Good News: Fish Oil Works

By Rick Ackerman Posted on February 28, 2012, 3:44 am EST Last Updated February 28, 2012, 6:09 am EST

A school shooting in Ohio left one student dead and four wounded. It also pushed the other big story of the day – Angelina Jolie’s wretchedly skinny arms and legs — below the fold by dinner time. But the real shocker was a story that said eating certain kinds of fish or taking fish oil supplements can actually do the body good. Specifically, the omega-3 fatty acids that are so abundant in fish oil appear not only to sharpen the mind, but to slow the aging process, improve cardiovascular health and reduce inflammation and joint pain. That’s quite a list, and it’s particularly good news for your editor, since, on his doctor’s advice, he began taking a fish oil supplement several years ago.  Not the cheap stuff, which the doctor said could cause more harm than good, but high-dosage, pharmaceutical-grade fish oil that supposedly contains no traces of mercury or other seaborne toxins.

As for the benefits, while it’s true that, at the ripe old age of 62, we have been forgetting to zip up our fly about half the time and leaving credit cards on store counters perhaps twice a week, we remains convinced that the consequences of our forgetfulness would be a lot worse if not for the fish oil.  Meanwhile, the story on the evening news about fish oil’s undeniable benefits is about as man-bites-dog as it gets, since health care professionals have done their darndest over the years to promote the idea that only prescription drugs are effective in curing what ails us. Putting aside the fabulous press Vitamin D supplements have enjoyed recently (undeserved, according to my doctor)  just about every supplement you can think of has been vilified over the years by medical science: St. John’s Wort, melatonin, zinc, biotin, Vitamins E, C, B – you name it. According to scientific experts, none of them confers any health benefits whatsoever.  They don’t boost the immune system, or help one sleep, or grow hair, or mitigate tinnitus, the scientists insist. But fish oil evidently does what is claimed by those who sell it. For the record, the supplement we use is from Life’s Abundance and labeled “Ultra-Refined Fish Oil Supplement with Sesamin.” Each capsule contains 1000 mg of fish oil concentrate, 400 mg of EPA, and 200 mg of DHA. The maker recommends taking four capsules daily.

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  • nitram March 9, 2012, 5:46 pm

    the best fish oil money can buy. then check your labs for improvement, for verification http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_trksid=p5197.m570.l1313&_nkw=res+q1250&_sacat=See-All-Categories

  • Yet Another Steve March 7, 2012, 8:09 pm

    If one tried to follow the nutrition recs here, one would go in several different directions. Some of the docs mentioned are shills, IMHO;some of the studies will probably be disproved by the next study.

    Eat protein low on the food chain…sardines, herring…and those multicolored vegetables. No one’s making a fortune telling you to eat them or by selling you high-piced supplements.

    JMHO.

    YAS

  • ter March 4, 2012, 10:15 pm

    Have taken 5000 mg of Vitamin D for a decade or so. My last (only) C-reactive protein test level was .01, barely measurable. Medical docs are not in the business to ensure wellness, just as cancer quacks haven’t the slightest interest in a cure, but enormous financial interest in continuing the very expensive, very ineffective treatments formally approved by the FDA et al. To live long, avoid proferssional medicine, except for minor surgeries, on an outpatient basis.

  • Usually a Rick fan March 1, 2012, 3:37 am

    Rick,
    I love your market comments and analysis, but you should stick to your knitting. The jury is still out on fish oil and your doctor needs a reading list. I would suggest any of the following as a starter: Never Be Sick Again by Raymond Francis; Eat to Live by Joel Fuhrman, M.D.; The China Study by T. Colin Campbell; and Health & Nutrition Secrets that can save your life by Russell L. Blaylock, M.D.

  • Mark Uzick February 29, 2012, 7:26 am

    JF: For any out there with “auto-immune” diseases, you might want to take the recent “Vit D” craze with a grain of salt.

    You’re right that scientific claims should be taken with a grain of salt, but don’t neglect to take this paper with a grain of salt too. In fact, the theories of Trevor G. Marshall, while interesting, are controversial; they’re generally dismissed by most doctors that specialize in immunology and the immune modulating effects of vitamin D. Vitamin D is not only a suppressant of immune function in some circumstances, but is needed for for this function to work; so in that sense can be thought of as an immune stimulant too.

    I’m not qualified to evaluate this paper, but it raised some concerns for me; and so I’ve asked my brother, who is qualified, to read it and get back to me about it.

    • JF March 3, 2012, 10:33 pm

      Hello Mark, thanks for your reply. I hope you read this, maybe Rick can give you a heads-up on it.

      I’m in my third month on a modified form of the Marshall Protocol, with some third-party guidance in addition to my doctor. My blood labs have shown a good deal of waxing and waning of inflammatory markers – so it looks like I’m killing these bacteria mentioned above. The related Herxheimer symptoms are encouraging as well. It’s a long process as you’ll see if you read patient interviews linked below, and I’m very early on in it.

      If you really want to go deep on this issue, or have someone who might need this information, I can suggest a few additional resources for you.

      I have both of the following textbooks:

      http://www.amazon.com/Cell-Wall-Deficient-FormsStealth-Pathogens/dp/0849387671/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1330805884&sr=1-1

      http://www.amazon.com/Metagenomics-Human-Body-Karen-Nelson/dp/1441970886/ref=sr_1_fkmr1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1330805963&sr=1-1-fkmr1

      For a quick overview of the research history behind the knowledge of L-Form bacteria, and what they’re capable of, see the following link.

      https://chronicillnessrecovery.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=117&Itemid=22

      For some of us, this issue is of paramount importance, far exceeding dietary and supplemental regimens. If you like detailed ‘anecdotal’ reports, see the following link. These were very sick people who pursued a gamut of other approaches that didn’t work for them.

      http://mpkb.org/home/patients/patient_interviews

      Again, hope this gets to you somehow and that you look further into this amazing subject. The author of the first textbook linked, Cell Wall Deficient Forms – Stealth Pathogens – has to be pushing 90, since she was teaching grad students in microbiology at my old alma mater back in the early 70’s. She has called this therapy a miracle, after a lifetime of developing methods to identify said bacteria in the lab.

      Modern genomic research has taken this understanding to whole new levels of awareness.

      Best regards,
      John

  • mario cavolo February 29, 2012, 6:39 am

    Very important consideration :

    Our son was born at end of October…yes he’s very healthy and a joy, not been any difficulties at all.

    Except, last check up, doc said, hey the back of his head is a bit too flat, his bones too soft, he’s not getting enough calcium/vitamin D…..and the culprit is? …..

    ….the drab sunless Shanghai winter. Exactly on the mark of this discussion. Its been cold and overcast most of the time since he was born, not too mention cold and raining sometimes too, so of course he’s mostly been cooped up in the house, not enough sunlight….makes a lot of sense….Cheers, Mario

    • mikeck February 29, 2012, 3:27 pm

      Indeed it should be unrefined and organic, just like the sea salt I use. If your sea salt is the pure white stuff, I figure you wasted your money.

  • mikeck February 29, 2012, 1:25 am

    Do not “forget” to check out coconut oil. I use it and sea salt, the real, gray, stuff on my toast. Here is a related video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DVD7ZuCe3vY

    • Dave February 29, 2012, 1:40 am

      Coconut oil is healthy if UNrefined, organic can’t hurt. Refined coconut oil, as most oils, is unhealthy. Both are sold by health food companies, the latter being used mainly for skincare.

    • fallingman February 29, 2012, 3:59 am

      Right on guys. For those concerned about Alzheimers and neurological diseases such as Parkinson’s and ALS, this is a must watch. Extra virgin coconut oil…who knew? Actually, a lot of us…for years.

      http://www.cbn.com/media/player/index.aspx?s=/mp4/LJO190v1_WS

      It’s those Medium Chain Triglycerides baby. After all these years, this is finally gaining currency.

      Note that this video has medical doctors and PhDs and everything…for those who need reassurance from someone with a white coat.

      Note also that this is yet another miracle substance that is cheap, natural, and effective. Tastes good too. Expect the attacks to commerce forthwith.

  • gary leibowitz February 28, 2012, 11:37 pm

    True that most vitamins have no conclusive blind study that proves its efficacy. I also have read many articles on Omega-3.

    I just bit the bullet. Went to your recommended website and bought some.

    I think I am already feeling the affects…..
    Will let you know after 6 months if I see a difference.

    • gary leibowitz February 28, 2012, 11:43 pm

      Another great call is the absolute steady move up for over one month for the DOW. 13085 looks like it will hit within one weeks time.

      I am pretty convinced this year turns out to be stellar for most investments. If so I would bet the farm on a devastating drop in equities and commodities in 2013. It could be the worse one year drop in decades if not longer. Getting ahead of myself. Inflation/stagflation fears this year followed by a deep but short deflation cycle in 2013. Thats my call!

  • Dave February 28, 2012, 10:08 pm

    Rick,

    Don’t believe all the hype an MD or big pharma says. You can get pharm grade fish oil much cheaper, like at Costco, molecular distilled, no merc etc. Most come from same source. Really, should know your blood type and check with D’Adamo’s blood type books, for example, Type B blood and most fish used for oils like sardines, anchovies, are not best compatible and can harm on certain levels. There you should use salmon and cod oils. Hemp oil is also healthiest omega 3/6/9 mix in nature. Vit D is another scam, I lived in Miami for 2 years, got lots of sun, still had below normal D levels. Taking Vit D made it worse, too much supp Vit D increases calcium levels, which s/b checked in routine blood tests. Only sunlight is best way to increase Vit D levels w/o toxicity. Sesamin, is from sesame seeds, also toxic for certain blood types, like B. You can get your overpriced oil w/o the sesamin.

    Like anything else, too much fish oil is detrimental… http://forums.johnstonefitness.com/showthread.php?t=38627

    If you haven’t done so, an advanced cholesterol test, VAP, measures 9 or more types of LDL, called VLDL, which shows your genetic inheritance and predisposition to heart disease. Depending on the sizes of your VLDL’s dictates what types of treatment s/b used to reduce LDL, increase HDL, like niacin, fish oils, statins, etc. It’s like HP analysis for your heart 😉

    http://cholesterol.about.com/lw/Health-Medicine/Drugs-and-treatments/The-VAP-Test-Beyond-Traditional-Cholesterol-Testing.htm

    Personally, an Atkins Dieter for over 30 years, I stopped listening to medical experts … sat fats, no refined carbs, keep low insulin levels keep my blood lipid profiles “healthy”. No fruits, little veggies, no grains, living like an Eskimo, in ketosis (benign dietary ketoacidosis) works best for me! Know your body type! 😉 When McDonalds switched from lard to veggie fats to make fries, caused today’s health problems!

  • Rich February 28, 2012, 8:31 pm

    Not much to add to all the nutritional wisdom above,
    except that I eat organic dirt whenever I can, as I find the trace minerals from Amazon’s Azomite eliminate the constant craving from mineral deficient modern foods.

    Got the idea from a Chinese friend who survived Mao by eating dirt cupcakes and said she was never ill.

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geophagy

  • Rich February 28, 2012, 8:17 pm

    http://bit.ly/zvcDWf 0:30

  • Tiburon February 28, 2012, 8:00 pm

    For what it’s worth – Dr. Mercola, who is a little aggressive in the product marketing department, has alot of solid nutritional and metabolic science research behind his pitches. For those of us of ‘mature years’ looking to maintain BMI and cardio-fitness, (and who may have been, unlike yours truly, doing the morning masochism runs in an endless quest for endorphins), doesn’t it just turn out that advanced research has pretty well shown that 20 minutes 3 x A WEEK is what’s required for optimal maintenance. However, of an intensity that seems daunting for the +60 crowd, but evidently can be achieved by most, as appropriate. The video here, working with a very famous strength and athletic trainer Phil Campbell, shows Mercola (who used to run) surviving the action, which stimulates both slow, medium and ultra-fast muscle fiber, burns fat like paper gold, and evidently ‘turns back the clock’ on the middle-age (late?) spread, etc etc. YouTube demo: – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zy7j9FRiJpg&feature=player_embedded

  • Robert February 28, 2012, 5:38 pm

    Ok, we’re all cheering for the fish oil… HOORAY!

    As a long time devotee of the pescadorial arts, I dare say my blood composition is probably already about 20% Omega 3.

    But, what about the SNAKE OIL…?

    If things are really going to get better for us, we need some serious press about the positive benefits of snake oil, so that we can all rest easy that Bernanke, Geithner et al really do have the “miracle elixir” for turning this global mad house back into a big carnival house of fun…

    🙂

    • Cam Fitzgerald February 28, 2012, 9:47 pm

      That’s brilliant Robert. A good dose of snake oil should be all we need to get housing moving in the right direction again, get that damn Brooklyn bridge sold and maybe even move some shadow inventory in Phoenix. Now if can just bottle the stuff and get some distribution set up everyone can get a dose.

  • JF February 28, 2012, 3:45 pm

    For any out there with “auto-immune” diseases, you might want to take the recent “Vit D” craze with a grain of salt. It is not a vitamin, it is a seco-steroid and the most cutting-edge research implicates the dysregulation of the VDR (vit d receptor) in inflammatory diseases like CFS, RA, IBS, etc.

    High dosing with D3 can exacerbate the normal metabolic levels of 1,25D and have an immuno-suppressive effect, which is why many people “feel better” when supplementing.

    This link will elaborate the issue in great detail, as well as introduce you to the problems we face with Cell-Wall Deficient (L-Form) bacteria, which have evolved the mechanism of turning off the VDR, which is responsible for producing the anti-microbials (cathelicidin, defensins) of the innate immune system.

    http://autoimmunityresearch.org/preprints/Proal2010CellularMolecularImmunologyPreprint.pdf

  • Bobby February 28, 2012, 3:39 pm

    I am just not sure if I want to remember what I did yesterday!

    • Cam Fitzgerald February 28, 2012, 4:50 pm

      Ah, I see Bobby has discovered the beer diet too! Kidding aside, I find I spend more time eliminating junk from my diet than adding supplements. There is too much of everything bad available all the time.

      Too much high cholesterol oils, too many trans fats, too much sugar in soda, too much salt in pickles. Too many doubts about genetically modified corn and canola…….Shoot, there is hardly anything you can eat that is safe in large quantities.

      I have no idea if my own diet is really all that good but I keep it simple. Plenty of fresh veggies, no overeating allowed, fish on Friday, liberal use of olive oil on everything, bread that I make myself and a helping of beer for dessert.

      Seriously, I think there is vitamin D in beer. Isn’t there?

  • Aussie Mick February 28, 2012, 3:37 pm

    Fire your doctor..he will make more money if you listen to him.

  • Jim Crosley February 28, 2012, 3:12 pm

    Hey Rick, I believe you are right about the fish oil and I too have been a partaker; however, at 68 the fly problem still exists.
    Take a look at this video at http://www.theabcvideo.com about Protandim. Donnie Osmond calls it the “fountain of youth”!
    Best, Jim

  • Carol February 28, 2012, 2:47 pm

    Rick “Putting aside the fabulous press Vitamin D supplements have enjoyed recently (undeserved, according to my doctor) ”

    Rick you need to find another doctor! While most doctors only receive one semester of nutrition “training” in medical school there are many enlightened doctors now a days who choose to learn more outside of their “training”. As is obvious, nutritional supplements and good foods (and superfoods) cannot be patented therefore there is no research done that proves their effectiveness. Who would pay the exorbitant costs to prove such a thing (of course this is all intentional). However anyone with half a brain can figure out that “You are what you eat” – how could it be any other way. The body is a miraculous self healing machine that when given the proper inputs (real foods) can and will heal itself.

    When and why did people ever buy into the nonsense that depression could possibly be cause by a lack of Prozac?? Or that sunlight is harmful as people who have been living in it for hundreds of thousands of years. Such quackery. I haven’t been to a doctor in years and refuse to go to one unless I have a broken bone or some other trauma as that seems to be about the only thing the medical industry is good at “curing”.

    For more on Vitamin D it has been proven to reduce the incidence of or cure at least the following diseases –

    1) The flu – In a study published in the Cambridge Journals, it was discovered that vitamin D deficiency predisposes children to respiratory diseases. An intervention study conducted showed that vitamin D reduces the incidence of respiratory infections in children.

    2.) Muscle weakness – According to Michael F. Holick, a leading vitamin D expert, muscle weakness is usually caused by vitamin D deficiency because for skeletal muscles to function properly, their vitamin D receptors must be sustained by vitamin D.

    3.) Psoriasis – In a study published by the UK PubMed central, it was discovered that synthetic vitamin D analogues were found useful in the treatment of psoriasis.

    4.) Chronic kidney disease – According to Holick, patients with advanced chronic kidney diseases (especially those requiring dialysis) are unable to make the active form of vitamin D. These individuals need to take 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 or one of its calcemic analogues to support calcium metabolism, decrease the risk of renal bone disease and regulate parathyroid hormone levels.

    5.) Diabetes – A study conducted in Finland was featured in Lancet.com in which 10,366 children were given 2000 international units (IU)/day of vitamin D3 per day during their first day of life. The children were monitored for 31 years and in all of them, the risk of type 1 diabetes was reduced by 80 percent.

    6.) Asthma – Vitamin D may reduce the severity of asthma attacks. Research conducted in Japan revealed that asthma attacks in school children were significantly lowered in those subjects taking a daily vitamin D supplement of 1200 IU a day.

    7.) Periodontal disease – Those suffering from this chronic gum disease that causes swelling and bleeding gums should consider raising their vitamin D levels to produce defensins and cathelicidin, compounds that contain microbial properties and lower the number of bacteria in the mouth.

    8.) Cardiovascular disease – Congestive heart failure is associated with vitamin D deficiency. Research conducted at Harvard University among nurses found that women with low vitamin D levels (17 ng/m [42 nmol/L]) had a 67 percent increased risk of developing hypertension.

    9.) Schizophrenia and Depression – These disorders have been linked to vitamin D deficiency. In a study, it was discovered that maintaining sufficient vitamin D among pregnant women and during childhood was necessary to satisfy the vitamin D receptor in the brain integral for brain development and mental function maintenance in later life.

    10.) Cancer – Researchers at Georgetown University Medical Center in Washington DC discovered a connection between high vitamin D intake and reduced risk of breast cancer. These findings, presented at the American Association for Cancer Research, revealed that increased doses of the sunshine vitamin were linked to a 75 percent reduction in overall cancer growth and 50 percent reduction in tumor cases among those already having the disease. Of interest was the capacity of vitamin supplementation to help control the development and growth of breast cancer specially estrogen-sensitive breast cancer.

    http://www.naturalnews.com/035089_vitamin_D_deficiency_signs_symptoms.html#ixzz1ngDOI9mE

    &&&&&

    See JF’s post on too much Vitamin D below. RA

    • JimK February 28, 2012, 4:54 pm

      Thank You Carol – D3 reduces almost all of the killer cancers, not just breast cancer. Vitamin D3 also lowers blood pressure – sometimes dramatically. It has also recently been shown to preserve telomeres (and therefore probably extend lifespan). The medical schools have taught for years that D is toxic, while it is the D2 synthetic form (which they prescribe) that carries the greater risk – D3 has been shown to be considerably safer than their training suggests. Note that vitamin D is a steroid hormone and not a vitamin – vitamins are substances that we cannot produce.

      Others on my ‘short list’ of nutrients most people need more of but usually neglect are chelated magnesium, Ubiquinol (reduced CoQ10), vitamin K2, and Lugol’s Iodine.

      Caution, if you are taking blood pressure meds, they could lower your bp to dangerously low levels after the above nutrients take care of your bp naturally… so, monitor bp and let doc know so they can adjust the meds after the above get you balanced.

    • Mark Uzick February 29, 2012, 7:31 am

      That theory in the paper he links to is controversial.

  • Seawolf February 28, 2012, 2:43 pm

    May I recommend the Real Age website. The following link is from todays e-mail: http://www.realage.com/food/is-coffee-healthy-check-these-three-big-benefits-of-coffee?eid=1010661684&memberid=10748634&cbr=pru_pr

    Register for their e-mails for regular food and nutrition tips. Take the real age test which I think you will find quite interesting. Lots of good information here.

  • Mark Uzick February 28, 2012, 11:07 am

    Rick, for your memory concerns I recommend that you read this article in “Life Extension Magazine”:

    http://www.lef.org/magazine/mag2012/feb2012_Novel-Magnesium-Compound-Reverses-Neurodegeneration_01.htm

    When the March issue goes on line you’ll be able to read more about the effect of excess iron’s effect on the brain and how to overcome it.

    For all your other health concerns, I recommend that you read each of their monthly issues for free.

    I’m about to place a large yearly order with them that consists of 32 different supplement formulas and that will probably total over $4,000. That doesn’t include fish oil, which I prefer to use in liquid form; I take one tablespoon per day.

    I’ve been ‘mega-dosing’ on nutritional supplements for the past 44 years and I do resistance training with weights about 3 times per week; I’ll be 57 in June, but I’m typically mistaken for a very fit 30 something.

    • mario cavolo February 28, 2012, 3:27 pm

      While I understand the fish oil supplements thing, let me throw up a friendly reminder that eating the real thing 3x times a week along with the other mentioned food items pretty much does the trick of getting you plenty of those good fatty acid oils and in the right balance of omega 3/6’s… I supposed one could argue that salmon and other fish 3x week might be a bit expensive…

    • fallingman February 29, 2012, 3:25 am

      Again, for those who weren’t paying attention to Mark’s post above: Life Extension Foundation. lef.org. They are the real deal and are perhaps the single best organization of any kind on the planet. No kidding. There are many years when I have matched Mark’s total expenditures. Best money I ever spent. I’m also 57 and also taken for much younger.

      I have spent over 30 years doing my best to ferret out the truth from all the propaganda and outright lies in the field. It isn’t easy.

      Background: I assisted my father in recovering from metastasized prostate cancer, using alternative means, when he had, at best, a one in a thousand chance of surviving five years. In 1988 at age 78, six years after they sent him home to die, he hiked to the top of Mt. Pisgah and was playing the occasional round of par golf. Didn’t happen by accident.

      My mother is 96 and has the blood profile of a 30 year old with perfectly soft and velvety skin. Didn’t happen by accident

      Here’s what I think I know. There is one whole helluva lot of ignorance among the public and so much disinformation spewed out by the drug lords and the medical combine that you are at serious risk if you believe anything they tell you without doing your best to confirm it yourself.

      For example, they obsess about cholesterol levels when they should be concentrating on inflammation as indicated by CRP levels, as well as homocysteine levels, ferritin levels (too much iron is very dangerous), vitamin D deficiency, omega 3 deficiency, ingesting too much omega 6’s, etc. etc.

      Yes, vitamin D3. Sorry, I don’t buy the dismissal of vitamin D at all…or the warnings. Vitamin D is, as someone noted, more hormone than it is vitamin. Chemically, it’s almost identical in structure to cholesterol, and indeed, without cholesterol, you wouldn’t synthesize the D you get from the sun or supplementation.

      The problem with vitamin D in the minds of the establishment is that it’s extremely inexpensive and does a lot of things they’d like to use drugs for exclusively.

      See Carole’s post just below for a lot more detail. (Thanks dahlin’ for saving me the time.) This super low cost upstart competitor has to be dealt with in much the same way the combine has tried to deal with Ron Paul. Make stuff up that isn’t true. Issue dire warnings. Act as if it’s just a “craze” and claim that anyone who would take it is careless and risking serious injury. Balderdash! Don’t buy one bit of it.

      I’ve had a LOT of experience with vitamin D3 and other than making sure you’re not taking D2 alone in its place and not forgetting to also take some K2 along with it, you will benefit immensely. If my health and that of those I counsel are any indication, you better not be without it. Those who are taking upwards of 8,000 ius a day may be guinea pigs in a self-administered experiment but I can tell you I’m very happy to be a guinea pig in this regard.

      As for the rest of the list in the article, I have to laugh. All the nutrients and herbs mentioned represent very low cost competition to the drug lords. As if melatonin doesn’t help you to sleep. Ha. It’s a naturally occurring hormone for god’s sake, whose main purpose is to pull down the shades and turn off the lights. Other than the percentage of people who are actually stimulated by it or those who haven’t a clue about how much to take, only someone who hasn’t used it would say it doesn’t do anything.

      The negative findings on vitamin E that were ballyhooed on the news are based on bad science. It’s a long, complicate story, but basically, they used dl alpha rather than gamma e. There were other issues, but you think the enemedia has the capacity or inclination to dig for the truth, especially when every third ad on the nightly news is for some killer drug?

      Anyway, that’s enough. Just count me as completely on the other side of the argument.

      One last thought. Rick, the idea that you have to spend a lot of extra money to get a “pharma grade” fish oil is just more propaganda. Making sure it’s free of mercury and other contaminants is important, of course, but there are plenty of high quality oils out there at a tenth of the cost that are perfectly fine.

      For those who really do eat well and don’t take in a lot of Omega 6’s…junk oils like the stuff in the grocery store, margarine, etc…I would recommend Udo’s Choice Oil Blend for a balanced essential oil blend that comes from the best land-based ingredients to complement the marine source. I like krill oil and cod liver oil. Also include extra virgin coconut oil, mostly for the MCTs.

      Please, please, since so few people will tell you about these things, make sure when you take the highly polyunsaturated omega 3’s (which you must keep refrigerated…or frozen) that you combine them with a sulfur-based protein such as eggs, cottage cheese, yogurt etc. In combination , you create a a lipoprotein that produces an “electron cloud” in the body, summoning energy and healing power.

      Those who are aware of the work of Johanna Budwig know what I’m talking about, but most are clueless.

      Inexpensive, natural, and effective. Do you get the competitive threat?

  • DJI February 28, 2012, 9:23 am

    Brilliant minds tend to venture off into totally unrelated subjects as there is so much in this world to learn about- there has to be more to life than studying offshore banking cartels out to enslave humanity. That’s what I like about you Rick. Fish Oil IS the cure for financial tedium.

    While we are listing off our discoveries (isn’t it amazing in a world of instant information we are having to discover what is so obvious?) here are mine:

    I avoid all GMO- including Canola (GMO’d rapeseed oil), Soybeans, sugar beets, animals that have been fed GMO & Aspartame (feces of ecoli) to name a few. All feeding studies have shown GMO’s cause sterilization by the 3rd generation in all mammals.
    Get TONS of D3 from the Sun. Your body generates a massive amount of D3 when exposed to the sun for a reason. http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=oy5_SB_OLxw#t=53m30s

  • RidetheWave February 28, 2012, 7:10 am

    Hi Rick,

    Thanks for the piece. I am kind of a paranoid about my health. At the ripe old age of 33 I take the following daily:

    Lutein – keeps the eye gunk out
    Selenium – for hair, nails, and supposedly sex drive
    Biotin – for hair and nails
    Cod Liver oil – for fatty acids and immune system
    COq10 – for immune system and heart
    Beta Caratene
    B12 – immune system
    Calcium supplements – I don’t drink enough milk
    Ginko Biloba – for memory
    Glucosamine chondroitin – I swear by the stuff and they saved my runners and basketball knees
    Multi-Vitamin – to get most of what my others don’tMilk Thistle – for improved liver function to help process all of the above plus all of my allergy meds…lol…

    In any event despite that long list, I refuse to condense that fully functioning ecosystem in my body that has yielded me a a 58 resting heart rate, no sick days in 2 years, 140 cholesterol, 110/70 blood pressure, and a brain that despite an average of 5 hours of sleep is sharp as a whip…….

    Whether it be 10 hour days saving my company Intel hundreds of millions testing our chips more cost effectively or trying to kill it in trading…..I consider the vitamin regimen above essential to my success….plus they give me the energy to exercise which also makes it all work…..

  • mario cavolo February 28, 2012, 6:35 am

    Timely Rick! I had my first full health check in 3 years and all is well except my bad LDL is through the roof! Eating way too much of the Asian style fatty meats…heavenly Hong Kong duck, Taiwan fatty pork, pigs feet and pigs ears…oh gastronomic delights 🙂 Note that I am a runner for years – 15km-25km/week, but that doesn’t change the need to look more closely at diet.

    Immediate research identified in order the best, most concentrated sources of omega 3’s

    1st. Cold pressed Flax seed oil..by far the highest source
    2nd. Walnuts…
    3rd. Salmon and other fatty fishes…and of course quality fish oil supplements as Rick notes today…

    Meanwhile, as others are kindly sharing proven great ingredients for heart/anti-inflammatory/ mind/immune – COq10, tocotrienol, rhodiola rosea, maca, dark chocolate, dark berries/cherries/grapes, curry paste ingredients, avocados, green teas, DIM, I3C ( just eat alot of cruciferous veggies for those) … there’s a few more of course but the above list is a great start…

    Cheers, Mario

    • Cam Fitzgerald February 28, 2012, 6:42 am

      You forgot to mention beer.

  • RichardB February 28, 2012, 6:26 am

    “contains no traces of mercury or other seaborne toxins.”
    You just have to get these from your vaccines like regular folks.

    I am no doctor, but the link with vitamin D and disease has been well known and researched for over 15 years. I would switch doctors. Even the official government recommendations have been increased. How does your doctor explain that fact?

    The original fear was toxicity until some scientists pointed out that your body makes 100 times the recommended dose in 15 minutes of total midday sun exposure. The question came about why is the body so stupid? It is not really clear where the excess is going from what I have read. Research continues.

    I have read a lot about aging as I have been afflicted with it for years. I suspect vitamin D, exercise, and proper glucose regulation affect the mitochondria and not the more popular chromosomes. That is where your age is determined along with the telomeres. In this instance, size does indeed appear to count.

    I have eaten porridge with cinnamon (glucose metabolism) and flax seed for years for the omega 3. A word of caution, there is some research on the ratio of omega 6 to omega 3s as well.

    Of the list of other “helpful”vitamins, only niacinamide and B12 are of interest to me. If I ever get younger, I will report back in 50 year or so. To your health!

    • mario cavolo February 28, 2012, 6:39 am

      “I have read a lot about aging as I have been afflicted with it for years.”

      RichardB 🙂 you get the gold star for that one…

    • Rick Ackerman February 28, 2012, 5:37 pm

      The amount of Vitamin D in most supplements amounts to an overdose, according to my doctor, and can cause increased levels of inflammatory, C-reactive protein. Higher levels of Vitamin D also turn into “bad” LDL, as Mario has noted below. Concerning getting your Vitamin D via sunshine, amounts absorbed in the winter, when the sun’s light is more oblique and you are dressed for the cold, are not nearly enough to fulfill your MDR.

  • j February 28, 2012, 6:19 am

    But does it improve your swimming Rick?

    Bought a can of tuna the other day and the label said packed in oil, compliments of B.P.

    I personally have no interest in any vitamin that would sharpen my mind, I like not knowing what the hell is going on……….it keeps me sharp!

  • Cam Fitzgerald February 28, 2012, 5:27 am

    And this chart from Bloomberg takes me back to a topic of a few days ago…..yup, it is for you, Mario. Please note this snapshot for the Shanghai Futures Exchange Copper Deliverable Stocks.

    Inventory, in short, is rising. Not only that, Mario, it is rising quite sharply which tells me that a great big fat copper short will come eventually. The reason for this sudden rise is that demand for copper in the construction of homes and commercial properties is plummeting in China as the housing bubble there deflates.

    More to come. Just keep watching.

    http://static.seekingalpha.com/uploads/2012/2/26/1006811-1330303488497141-Paulo-Santos_origin.png

    By the way, I never said there would be a “crash” in China. On the contrary, I said that I seriously doubted the GDP growth rates would fall below 6%. That means there will be no “hard landing” for China in my opinion but that commodity producing nations such as Canada and Australia will be feeling the effects sooner rather than later.

    • Cam Fitzgerald February 28, 2012, 5:32 am

      Should have said speculative interest….but you got my point.
      Here is the chart again with more info. Click on the 3yr for the detail I am looking at.
      http://www.bloomberg.com/quote/SHFCCOPD:IND/chart

    • Mark Uzick February 28, 2012, 10:32 am

      Feel free to correct me if I’m wrong, but this is what I’ve heard: The real inflation rate in China, not the state’s massaged statistic, is ~ 15%; and the nominal GNP – another dubious statistic – is ~ 8%. That means that there’s a ~ 7% yearly decline in China’s production. That sounds like a depression to me.

      It may not seem that way to middle and upper class urban Chinese, who, through enterprise and thrift, have amassed wealth and stayed out of debt. That economy can retrace substantially and yet still be far ahead of where it was just half a decade ago.

    • mario cavolo February 28, 2012, 11:50 am

      Cam, Mark, …yes good way to look at it Mark…yet you can’t dismiss other positive offsets like rising salaries which I’d say are up on the order of 50-100% and more amongst the white collar salary category, while up around 20-30% for lower level service workers. Related issue is rise in the cost of transportation, for example, as they retire the old, dirty slower trains, and putting in the new, faster ones, the train ticket prices are going from 30rmb up to 60rmb….still cheap by western standards, but alot of money for low level workers who need to hop the train or busses… The airport shuttle bus from downtown used to be 14 rmb, now its like 22rmb, etc…hell that’s 50% !!

      U.S. and China both the same in that the ones really suffering the inflation problem are the older folks on fixed low pension incomes, like my mother-in-law, the woman is freaking out as she has seen local farmer’s market prices up around 30% for veggies, chicken, pork over the past couple of years…

    • Mark Uzick February 28, 2012, 2:55 pm

      Mario, please tell me if this comparison is correct: I’ve noticed that when American companies lose revenues they tend to be so leveraged and inflexible in their overhead that they start bleeding red and often end up bankrupt, whereas Chinese companies often lose large portions of their revenues and yet are often able to maintain high profitability, albeit at an amount reduced in proportion to their gross revenues.

      This Chinese flexibility, that probably has much to do with greater economic freedom in some critical areas, scales up from the microeconomic scale to the Chinese macro-economy so that a depression there means something very different than a depression here.

      Also: Just like American businesses and consumers, the American governments on all levels are leveraged to the hilt with debt, making this economy vulnerable to disaster at the slightest setback, whereas the Chinese have the liquidity to ride out even major setbacks.

      Not that China doesn’t have its own special problems such as its aging population and a migrant labor force that supports its impoverished rural families, that if too many become unemployed, could lead to political instability, as China is more of an empire of disparate peoples and languages, held together by force and economic incentives.

    • mario cavolo February 28, 2012, 3:33 pm

      Hi Mark, yep on the mark…its always been my witty quip that “when China’s housing market declines by 30% everyone will just continue sitting around, chatting and drinking their tea. When you’re not so deep in the hole, plus cash rich, things still can go bad, but they don’t spin out of control…thatssssssss the difference…. pretty much the same for businesses too. But now we can see we’ve got some high profile companies in certain sectors like real estate/construction who really leveraged to the hilt and are doing drastic things hurting their customers and making the headlines….makes for great news and will indeed be some financial nuclear disasters, such doesn’t change my view those scenarios continue to be isolated cases not a widespread economic theme here… Also a really weird promo lately about some new gold exchange allowing Bank of Agriculture clients to buy gold/silver etc…what a bunch of crap, I’ve reported here before that gold/silver purchase acces has been easy in China for almost 3 years directly through any major bank online bank account…click of a mouse easy to buy/sell spot at normal spreads…sorry, a little off topic….Cheers

    • Robert February 28, 2012, 5:30 pm

      Mario-

      This exchange between you and Cam has been very constructive (when you guys are sticking to the primary topic, instead of focusing on each other’s writing/communication “styles” 🙂 )

      You make a very good point in that the Chinese middle class has real savings that go beyond their houses and real estate equity.

      In the US circa 2007, the housing decline was very damaging because Americans had pretty much isolated themselves to a “savings island” that essentially floated on nothing but their real estate equity.

      In China, a real estate market correction, collapse, etc will not completely wipe out the savings of the entire chinese middle class the way 2007-08 did in the US.

      The Chinese situation today reminds me more of the US real estate decline that took hold in the late 70’s/early 80’s… A setback to be sure, but probably not the final nail in the Chinese coffin (by any stretch)

      Meanwhile Chinese price increases on staples will add pressure in the near term, but over the long term expect the continuing modernization of chinese agriculture to steadily restore the land and increase productivity. Remember, central China right now is going through a 1930’s style “dust bowl” moment as poor soil management practices have damaged the productivity of the land…. But, just like in the 1930’s, the land will recover- Try as we might, humans are not quite so adept at “destroying” the Earth as Al Gore would have us all believe.

      I personally know US trained and educated foresters and land managers that are making some serious coinage as consultants in China.

      There is a good chance (in my mind) that betting on rising Chinese interest rates might be a solid 5 year plan…

  • Cam Fitzgerald February 28, 2012, 5:02 am

    “high-dosage, pharmaceutical-grade fish oil”…….
    ————————-
    But is it legal, Rick?

  • Bob February 28, 2012, 4:31 am

    Good Geezus! Can you imagine a barrel full of fermenting cod livers? I’ll take the pills, thank you!

    By the way, I’m 72 and I’ll swear by CO Q 10. I’ve tried many things but I’m pretty much down to that and Hawthorne. Haven’t seen a doctor in probably too long, but I just don’t feel a need for it. :))

    • Mary Singleton February 28, 2012, 6:06 pm

      Rick,

      TED lecture – October 2011,
      Dr Terry Wahls – this is well worth the 15 minutes of your time.
      Regards,
      Mary

  • wesley February 28, 2012, 4:09 am

    Anyone can prove fish oil works apart from the AMA biased studies. Just monitor your blood work closely for a year after beginning a regimen and your blood will thank you within months.

    Great idea to discuss this Rick; we need to take every opportunity to expose the establishment types who won’t admit to any benefits of a product that cannot be patented.

    I take this kind….http://www.greenpasture.org/public/Products/CodLiverOil/index.cfm

    Its slowly improving my HDL/LDL numbers.

    They say cod livers were sacred food in ancient times for the Romans and Vikings of their day. They apparently kept barrels of them by their front doors to slowly ferment.


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