Archive for the ‘omega-3’ Category

Watsonville, CA (June 15, 2010) Nordic Naturals, the industry leader in omega-3 fish oil, introduces Omega Probiotic™, a synergistic blend of fish oil and live probiotic spores for optimal digestive and gastrointestinal health. The breakthrough formula combines two important nutrients that are commonly lacking in today’s modern diet in one easy-to-take supplement that does not require refrigeration.

Concentrated fish oil works in synergy with a unique spore-form probiotic, Bacillus coagulans, to deliver all the health benefits of omega-3s (EPA+DHA), while also supporting the immune system and promoting an optimal balance of healthy bacteria in the digestive tract. Unlike most probiotics on the market, this species of probiotic is in spore form. Research shows that this unique spore-form probiotic delivers ten times more live cultures than common probiotic yogurt cultures, delivers those cultures more effectively, and does not require special treatments such as refrigeration.

According to Dr. Joseph Maroon, Nordic Naturals Medical Advisor, “This timely product provides an important way for consumers to be proactive with their health care. This two-in-one product is also perfect for travel, making compliance easy.”

Nordic Naturals Omega Probiotic offers these important benefits:

• Provides over 2 billion stable and viable probiotic spores per serving
• Provides double strength EPA+DHA fish oil for more omega-3 benefits
• Supports the body’s natural anti-inflammatory response
• Promotes a healthy balance of intestinal flora
• Enhances overall digestive and gastrointestinal health and function

Omega Probiotic contains purified fish oil from anchovies and sardines sustainably sourced from the waters of the South Pacific. Nordic Naturals’ policy is to harvest 100% of its fish in compliance with the Norwegian fisheries management system, which has been a model for the sustainable harvest of marine life for over 30 years. For more information about the company’s commitment to green and socially responsible initiatives, please visit www.planetnordic.com.

Since 1995, Nordic Naturals has been the industry leader in fish oil supplementation, setting standards of excellence in the areas of purity, freshness, taste, and sustainability. With a reputation for efficacy and potency, Nordic Naturals fish oils and EFA blends are regularly chosen by independent research institutions and universities with 13 published scientific studies already completed and more than 30 currently underway. Distributing to over 20 countries on 6 continents, Nordic Naturals offers over 150 products in a variety of flavors, concentrations, and delivery forms. Nordic Naturals continues to deliver on its promise of innovation and quality you can trust. For information, call 800.662.2544 or visit www.nordicnaturals.com.

It has been known for a long time that cold water fish are a great source of omega-3. What many people don’t know is that the industrialized food chain now produces a substantial portion of its harvest from mega fish-farms. Here the unnatural diet is soy and grain meal produce more omega-6 than omega-3.

Fish obtain their omega-3 by consuming natural sources of these fats. The original source of EPA and DHA is from marine algae and phytoplankton. Small fish eat algae and phytoplankton. Larger fish eat smaller fish so the larger fish have more omega-3. Farmed fish on the other hand are completely dependent on their feed and when it does not contain EPA and DHA, the fish will not contain it in the levels found in wild fish.

Some groups of people who are at high risk for omega-3 deficiency (and thus cardiovascular disease) are vegetarians, especially vegans. Omega-3 is absent from plant foods. Flax seeds and oil contain the omega-3 alpha-linolenic acid (ALA) which is converted very slowly in the body to EPA and DHA.

Then there is the situation where the right amount of omega-3 for one person is not the right amount for another. Each individual may need a different amount of omega-3 to obtain the right balance between omega-3 and omega-6 in their body. Omega-3 lowers inflammation whereas omega-6 raises inflammation in the body. We need both but need to have a balance.

It’s not that our bodies have changed in what is needed for good health. It’s that our production and intake of foods has been modified. And for our health’s sake usually not to the better.

The good news is that researchers have found ways to measure the ratio of omega-3 to omega-6 in our bodies. It’s a simple blood test. Your risk of sudden cardiac death can be estimated from the Omega-3 Whole Blood Score. The groundbreaking work of a team of Harvard researchers found that people with total levels above 6.1% in the blood had a 90% reduction in risk of sudden cardiac arrest compared with those whose omega-3 were 4.3% or less of their total fatty acids.

You can read more of this study in the May 2010 issue of Life Extension.

Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is rapidly approaching epidemic levels with up to 26 million Americans suffering from some form of kidney disease. The kidneys filter 200 quarts of blood every day. Our high-pressure and toxin-rich environment to surrounding renal function makes these delicate, highly complex organs especially vulnerable to damage, dysfunction, and disease.

High blood pressure, elevated blood sugar, NSAIDs (such as ibuprofen), certain medications, and high-protein diets are the most common threats to kidney health.

Nutrients such as pyridoxal-5-phosphate (P5P), CoQ10, silymarin, resveratrol and lipoic acid along with Omega-3 are all clinically supported, potent interventions.

Read the whole story in May, 2010 issue of Life Extension.

FDA allows potato chips to be advertised as “heart healthy”

Frito-Lay® is a subsidiary of the Pepsi-Cola company. Frito-Lay® sells $12 billion a year of products that include:

Lays® Potato Chips, Doritos®, Tostitos®, Cheetos®, and Fritos®

You might not associate these mostly-fried snack foods as being good for you, but the FDA has no problem allowing the Frito-Lay® website to state the following:

“Frito-Lay snacks start with real farm-grown ingredients. You might be surprised at how much good stuff goes into your favorite snack. Good stuff like potatoes, which naturally contain vitamin C and essential minerals. Or corn, one of the world’s most popular grains, packed with Thiamin, vitamin B6, and Phosphorous – all necessary for healthy bones, teeth, nerves and muscles.

And it’s not just the obvious ingredients. Our all-natural sunflower, corn and soybean oils contain good polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fats, which help lower total and LDL “bad” cholesterol and maintain HDL “good” cholesterol levels, which can support a healthy heart. Even salt, when eaten in moderation as part of a balanced diet, is essential for the body.”

Wow! Based on what Frito-Lay® is allowed to state, it sounds like we should be living on these snacks. Who would want to ingest walnuts, pomegranate, or green tea (which FDA now says are illegal drugs) when these fat-calorie laden, mostly-fried carbohydrates are so widely available?

According to the Frito Lay® website, Lays® potato chips are now “heart healthy” because the level of saturated fat was reduced and replaced with sunflower oil. Scientific studies do show that when a polyunsaturated fat (like sunflower oil) is substituted for saturated fat, favorable changes in blood cholesterol occur.

Fatally omitted from the Frito-Lay® website is the fact that sunflower oil supplies lots of omega-6 fats, but no omega-3s. The American diet already contains too many omega-6 fats and woefully inadequate omega-3.

Excess omega-6 fats in the diet in the absence of adequate omega-3s produces devastating effects including the production of pro-inflammatory compounds that contribute to virtually every age-related disease including atherosclerosis.

For the FDA to allow Frito-Lay® to pretend there are heart benefits to ingesting their high-calorie snack products, while censoring the ability of walnut companies to make scientifically-substantiated claims, is tantamount of treason against the health of the American public.

This is a long article. I put it here because of the importance of  taking omega-3 and the scare put out in California. One thing I know: You can trust Nordic Naturals for all their products.

Choosing a Safe and Effective Fish Oil Product

Given the vast and growing body of scientific research proving the many health benefits of omega-3 fatty acids, we know that fish oil is important in the diet. However, a recent law suit in California with regard to a state law about proper labeling known as Proposition 65 has cast a doubt in the public’s mind on whether fish oil is really safe because these supplements could contain toxic contaminants. In this law suit, PCBs were singled out as the culprit. To put things into perspective, PCBs are ubiquitous within the environment, which means that all fish, whether they are caught for food from the ocean or a river or are used to make fish oil, will contain at least trace amounts of PCBs. In fact, since whole fish filets are not purified before arriving at the store, there is a much greater chance that our fish dinner is higher in PCBs than our fish oil supplementation.

Fish oil is safe but some fish oil is purer than others – not to mention fresher, better tasting and sourced with greater respect for the environment. But how can consumers know that they are buying a high quality fish oil supplement?

When it comes to choosing fish oil supplements, whether in liquid form, soft gel or effervescent form, there is a wide range of quality markers and standards. Making an informed choice will ensure a better experience in terms of efficacy, dosage, compliance, and planetary impact. Don’t fall prey to marketing language – be it from the supplier or the manufacturer.

There is one simple way for you to be confident that the product you are buying will provide the health benefits you are looking for and deliver the quality markers discussed above: third party testing. Any responsible fish oil manufacturer will commission an independent testing organization who does not benefit financially from the test results to test their product. The test results should be listed on the company website or made available to you by email even if the company is not manufacturing the oil themselves. Sometimes you will find test results on public websites like www.ifosprogram.com. By comparing the test results for purity and freshness levels from different brands, you can differentiate lower quality from higher quality fish oil, thereby ensuring safety and efficacy.

Follow these guidelines to get to the basics:

• Purity from contaminants and toxins is a top priority. Dioxins, PCBs, Mercury and Lead are a few of the contaminants that must be avoided in quantities that are harmful to humans. Though all food substances, including fish oil, could contain some level of these contaminants, look for brands that test to very refined levels and find no detectable levels when tested at 10 ppb for mercury and lead and .5 ppt for PCBs and dioxins. In addition, raw material should be harvested from healthy and abundant waters, processed to eliminate environmental contaminants, and then third-party tested to ensure that the finished product exceeds international pharmaceutical standards. Some internationally-accepted quality standards include: CRN (Council for Responsible Nutrition), WHO (World Health Organization) and IFOS (International Fish Oil Standards). It is important to note that some heat is required to extract the oil from a fish and to remove environmental contaminants. Despite what is being said in the market, fish oil must go through a cleansing process that uses heat. This can easily be done using low heat without injury to the oil. A method such as molecular distillation is effective for ensuring purity levels.

• Exceptional freshness levels are absolutely essential and ensure product integrity and biological efficacy. Oxidized (rancid) oil is not healthy for the body, and is the cause of the fishy smell, taste and burps that many people have experienced with fish oil. Companies have been known to try to mask smell by using flavoring, so check for third party test results for peroxide levels (current oxidation) and anisidine values (past oxidation). Freshness is measured by anisidine and peroxide values, which combine for a TOTOX or total oxidation value. Look for a TOTOX value of less than 26.0 meq/kg — the lower the number the fresher the fish oil. This value is put forth by CRN, IFOS and GOED.

• Look for processing methods that do not include the presence of oxygen, excessive heat or chemicals. Processing the oil in a nitrogen environment and without oxygen will prevent oxidative rancidity. Mild heat is necessary, and as long as there is no oxygen present, heat does not pose a threat.

• Dosage is key with fish oil so read the supplement facts panel on the product. For general maintenance, a daily dose would average about 500 mg of EPA and DHA. This can often be accomplished with one soft gel or 1/4 tsp of a high quality concentrated fish body oil or ½ tsp of cod liver oil. Products containing a lower concentration of EPA and DHA mean that you have to take more soft gels to get the required amount of EPA and DHA. That’s why a less expensive bottle does not necessarily mean a good bargain! You must read the label.

• Great taste is important to ensure compliance. Exceptional freshness will ensure good taste.  And be sure to choose a supplement with only natural flavorings and preservatives.

• Purchase from a reputable company that has an excellent track record for: environmental sustainability with regards to fishing practices, a strong corporate/social responsibility profile, community involvement, and respect from the medical and health professional community.

• Since most packaging does not give the whole “fish” story, go to the website or call the customer service department to fill in the blanks. A quality company will go out of their way to make sure you have this information.

Compliments of Nordic Naturals (www.nordicnaturals.com)

Nordic Naturals is dedicated to educating the public on pure, effective, and safe fish oil products. To learn more about this initiative, please request an interview from one our experts:

Stuart Tomc, CNHP, Nordic Naturals Educator and Radio/TV personality

Bradley West, ND, Nordic Naturals Research Advisor

Joseph Maroon, MD, Nordic Naturals Medical Advisor

Reference websites:

GOED — Global Organization for EPA and DHA www.goedomega3.com

CRN — Council for Responsible Nutrition www.crnusa.org

WHO — World Health Organization www.who.int

IFOS — International Fish Oil Standards  www.ifosprogram.com

A recent lawsuit filed in California has many people concerned about the potential toxins in fish oil supplements. The March 2010 labeling lawsuit alleges that eight fish oil companies violated the California’s Proposition 65 by failing to disclose on the product label that their fish oil supplements contained PCB contamination above the “safe harbor” limits set for human PCB consumption. Proposition 65, also known as the Safe Drinking Water and Toxic Enforcement Act of 1986, requires companies doing business in California to provide a “clear and reasonable” warning before knowingly exposing anyone to one or more toxic chemicals known to cause cancer, birth defect, or other reproductive harm. As it pertains to fish oil supplements, this means that companies doing business in California are required to disclose this warning on the label. To learn more about this law suit, please see www.fishoilsafety.com.

PR Contact: Shari Hindman

Integral Marketing, Inc.

Boulder, Colorado

303.499.9665

sharilhindman1@comcast.net

The heart health benefits of omega-3 fatty acids have been well-documented beginning in the 1970s. bringing us up to date we see the polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) have been linked to improved blood lipid levels and reduced blood pressure and heart rates.

Now a new study in the British Journal of Nutrition reports that increased intakes of eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), docosapentaenoic acid (DPA), and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) may reduce the risk of angina and chest pains.

Recently I was told to increase my daily intake of omega-3 to 4 grams a day since I had a cardiac arrest three years ago.

Omega-3 May Combat Mouth Bacteria, Boost

Oral Health by Stephen Daniells

The dental health benefits of omega-3 fatty acids may include anti-

bacterial effects, extending the benefits beyond inflammation, says

a new study from the University of Kentucky.

Omega-3 fatty acids of marine and plant origin were found to have

strong anti-bacterial activity against a range of oral pathogens,

according to findings published in Molecular Oral Microbiology.

EPA (eicosapentaenoic acid), DHA (docosahexaenoic acid) and ALA

(alpha-linolenic acid), as well as their fatty acid ethyl esters could

inhibit the growth of oral pathogens, including Streptococcus

mutans, Candida albicans, and Porphyromonas ginigivalis at

relatively low doses.

“To date, this is the first study to demonstrate the significant

antibacterial activity of omega-3 fatty acids and their esters against

oral pathogens,” wrote Dr Brad Huang and Dr Jeff Ebersole from the

Center for Oral Health Research at U of K’s College of Dentistry.

www.Nutraingredients.com

Increased intakes of the omega-3 fatty acid DHA (docosahexaenonic acid) may improve mental function in middle age people, suggests a new study from the US.

Read the whole article in www.nutraingredients-usa.com, March 1, 2010

I get my Omega-3 from Nordic Naturals because their standards are above the European requirements for purity and those standards are above the US standards. Check out their website: www.NordicNaturals.com

Omega-3 fish oil may reduce the likelihood of developing psychotic disorders in high-risk people. Twelve weeks of supplementation with fish oil rich in EPA and DHA reduced the risk of the progression to full threshold psychosis by 22.6 percent in a study published in Archives of General Psychiatry. This is the first study of people with risk of psychosis.

Since omega-3 produces changes in cell membranes and lowers inflammation in blood vessels it would only seem normal to help those with psychosis. The study used 1.2 grams of omega-3. Studies for reducing inflammation in the arteries used 4 to 5 grams in their program.

It’s becoming clear to more and more people the importance of omega-3 as an anti-inflammatory supplement to decrease the need for drugs, which often have dangerous side effects.

Missouri based Cardio Tabs is beginning to use the by-product of calamari (squid) for omega-3. The company says they use the unused portion of squid to produce high-grade omega-3 and some are calling it a green product. Squid is a competitive source to tuna.

As the world continues to become more aware of the importance of DHA and EPA omega-3 will come into more demand. I continue to use Nordic Naturals for my omega-3.