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For those who want to take DHA/EPA supplements, but don't want to contribute to the destruction of fisheries (both oil fish and krill), look for vegan supplemen

For those who want to take DHA/EPA supplements, but don't want to contribute to the destruction of fisheries (both oil fish and krill), look for vegan supplements. They're more expensive, but the price is coming down as volume grows. Vegan omega-3 supplements are made from algae, which are the original source of the oils for all fish as well.

KitDuncan 5y ago
Also less mercury contamination.
TurboHaskal 5y ago
Which ones are those? I know people are taking flaxseed and rapeseed oil but that's mostly ALA which is hardly converted to DHA by the body.
- adrian_b 5y ago
  There are various unicellular organisms that are cultivated either for EPA extraction or for DHA extraction. Usually EPA and DHA coming from 2 different cultures are mixed into a commercial "algae oil", together with some vegetable oil. Most of those unicellular organisms are not algae, but there is no better name that could be understood by the general public. For example, EPA is extracted from thraustochytrids, which are non-photosynthetic unicellular distant relatives of the brown algae. The only problem with the "algae" oil is that for now it is very expensive. In Europe it is 8 times more expensive than fish oil. While I eat mostly vegan food, I make a couple of exceptions and one of them is fish oil. I have tried algae oil. It was good, but I could not afford to pay for an adequate daily dose of it. I do not know how much of this premium price is due to the cultivation costs and how much is due to vegans accepting to pay more for a vegan solution.
  - martimarkov 5y ago
    Do you think this is a normal price for them (and also actually real, good quality oil): https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B07BRY1FRZ https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B07BRY1FRZ I also saw normal fish oil in similar price range but that could just be Amazon inflating prices?
    - adrian_b 5y ago
      I pay for cod liver oil a price that divided by the content of omega-3 acids results in about EUR 0.10 per gram. At your link, the price is GBP 17 per 24 g DHA, which results in about EUR 0.82 per gram of omega-3. I have paid about the same price, i.e. 8 times higher than fish oil, for a similar algae oil. So the price seems right. However the product from your link has a problem, it contains only DHA. There are 2 omega-3 acids that are required by the human body, DHA and EPA. Fish oil contains both and also vitamin D. The cultivated algae produce either DHA or EPA, not both. Some vendors mix oils from 2 algae cultures, to sell supplements with both DHA and EPA. Others sell DHA and EPA separately, like in your link. If you choose this DHA supplement, you must also search an EPA supplement, to take them both. Otherwise you must search a supplement with both DHA and EPA. The prices are about the same so it is just a matter of convenience to choose separate or combined supplements. Unfortunately, I have not seen any algae oil at a significantly different price, so the only cheaper solution is fish oil, at an 8-times lower price.
- Leparamour 5y ago
  >which is hardly converted to DHA by the body Hardly or just in small quantities? With flaxseed oil, you could just consume more of it in order to offset the low ALA/DHA conversion rate. Or is there a downside to the idea?
  - adrian_b 5y ago
    The downside is that you do not know how much you should eat, because the conversion efficiency varies from human to human and it also diminishes with increasing age. Eating too much ALA, with the hope that this will be enough to ensure the DHA & EPA that you need, even in the worst case, can be harmful. Nevertheless, this is a problem mostly for those who eat little or no animal foods. Otherwise you might get enough DHA and EPA from the normal food. Actually the best source of omega-3 acids are the animal brains, which are very tasty when well cooked. However, since the Mad Cow disease, the popularity of eating brains has strongly declined, even among non-vegans.
    - Leparamour 5y ago
      > Nevertheless, this is a problem mostly for those who eat little or no animal foods. That is why I'm curious. I've been living nearly-vegan for 15 years now and I've been "supplementing" with flaxseed oil for a few years now as well (still can't get used to the taste).
- marton78 5y ago
  Google for Opti3 vegan capsules from a company called Vegetology. They have the highest DHA/price ratio I know.
  - nate_meurer 5y ago
    On their website they have a 3-for-2 deal that is indeed the least expensive vegan DHA/EPA supplement I've seen so far. Thanks for the recommendation.
  - greenbush 5y ago
    The cheapest I've found so far are Walmart's Spring Valley Omega-3, 1000 mg, 180 count for $15.48.
armedpacifist 5y ago
I've heard some people (Rhonda Patrick from the top of my mind) say that the omega 3 coming from vegan sources (nuts, seeds, algae...) would not be as efficient as their non-vegan counterpart even if they are already converted to epa/dha. I haven't been able to find any conclusive research on this though. Anyone one with some expertise is the field caring to clarify?
- adrian_b 5y ago
  I am not sure what you mean by organic and non-organic. The chemical synthesis of the omega-3 acids is too expensive, so all commercial products claiming to contain omega-3 acids contain such acids that have been extracted from living beings. Therefore all commercial omega-3 acids are organic. Because the omega-3 acids are expensive, they frequently are sold diluted in some other kind of oil. The oil used for dilution should be some good quality vegetable oil. Unfortunately there are cases when some junk oil is used for dilution, possibly including various garbage, e.g. colorants or flavors. Therefore, when choosing an omega-3 supplement, it is good to check the list of ingredients to see whether the good omega-oil is not mixed with a bunch of undesirable, possibly non-organic, substances. The main component, i.e. the omega-3 acids, can be found in one of 3 sources: 1. A few vegetable sources with short-chain omega-3 acids, e.g. walnut cores, flax seed or hemp seed 2. Fish oil, e.g. cod liver oil or salmon oil 3. "Algae" omega-3 oil The first group of omega-3 sources does no harm and people who eat enough animal food might not need anything else. On the other hand, people who eat little or no animal food must eat some omega-3 supplements belonging either to the second or to the third group. There is no efficiency difference between fish oil and "algae" oil. The only difference is that the "algae" oil is more expensive, but it is available for those who do not want fish oil. Like I have said, it is imperious to check the composition of any supplement, to see which is the real content in EPA and DHA and whether they are not mixed with some junk. Many omega-3 supplements appear to be cheaper, but they are diluted and their real cost per EPA+DHA may be higher than of other non-diluted supplements.
  - fpoling 5y ago
    Fish oil may also contain heavy metals due to accumulation of those through food chain. Some companies claim to filter those, but with algae there is no such risk at all.
elric 5y ago
I've used both fish oil supplements and algae based supplements. The latter left a very unpleasant fishy (well, algaeal, I guess) taste in my mouth every time I burped, even when taking them with food. The fish oil supplements (paradoxically) did not have that effect.
- hugi 5y ago
  As an Icelander raised on Lýsi (cod liver oil) I remember fishy burps all day long as a kid. I still take Lýsi every day but the burps are gone, it's probably a couple of decades now since they perfected purification of the oil to make it mostly taste/smell free. My kids still get lýsi every day to no complaints (and it's a part of the daily routine in Icelandic kindergartens).
  - adrian_b 5y ago
    Yes, I have also started recently to eat daily some cod liver oil and I have been surprised that it has only a very faint and pleasant fishy flavor. The fish oil that was available when I was a child had a much stronger and less pleasant smell.
  - gls2ro 5y ago
    When is the best time to give the code liver oil to a kid? (Or maybe it does not matter) but I read multiple suggestions: in the morning after breakfast or at least 1-2 hours _before_ a meal or at least 1-2 hours _after_ a meal. Can you please share when do you give this? ( I am assuming that you have a better tradition/understanding of this)
arthur_sav 5y ago
Don't they have fish farms specifically for this purpose?
marton78 5y ago
Second that. My favourite are Opti3 from Vegetology (not affiliated, just a happyn long time customer).

KitDuncan 5y ago

Also less mercury contamination.

TurboHaskal 5y ago

Which ones are those? I know people are taking flaxseed and rapeseed oil but that's mostly ALA which is hardly converted to DHA by the body.

adrian_b 5y ago
There are various unicellular organisms that are cultivated either for EPA extraction or for DHA extraction. Usually EPA and DHA coming from 2 different cultures are mixed into a commercial "algae oil", together with some vegetable oil. Most of those unicellular organisms are not algae, but there is no better name that could be understood by the general public. For example, EPA is extracted from thraustochytrids, which are non-photosynthetic unicellular distant relatives of the brown algae. The only problem with the "algae" oil is that for now it is very expensive. In Europe it is 8 times more expensive than fish oil. While I eat mostly vegan food, I make a couple of exceptions and one of them is fish oil. I have tried algae oil. It was good, but I could not afford to pay for an adequate daily dose of it. I do not know how much of this premium price is due to the cultivation costs and how much is due to vegans accepting to pay more for a vegan solution.
- martimarkov 5y ago
  Do you think this is a normal price for them (and also actually real, good quality oil): https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B07BRY1FRZ https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B07BRY1FRZ I also saw normal fish oil in similar price range but that could just be Amazon inflating prices?
  - adrian_b 5y ago
    I pay for cod liver oil a price that divided by the content of omega-3 acids results in about EUR 0.10 per gram. At your link, the price is GBP 17 per 24 g DHA, which results in about EUR 0.82 per gram of omega-3. I have paid about the same price, i.e. 8 times higher than fish oil, for a similar algae oil. So the price seems right. However the product from your link has a problem, it contains only DHA. There are 2 omega-3 acids that are required by the human body, DHA and EPA. Fish oil contains both and also vitamin D. The cultivated algae produce either DHA or EPA, not both. Some vendors mix oils from 2 algae cultures, to sell supplements with both DHA and EPA. Others sell DHA and EPA separately, like in your link. If you choose this DHA supplement, you must also search an EPA supplement, to take them both. Otherwise you must search a supplement with both DHA and EPA. The prices are about the same so it is just a matter of convenience to choose separate or combined supplements. Unfortunately, I have not seen any algae oil at a significantly different price, so the only cheaper solution is fish oil, at an 8-times lower price.
Leparamour 5y ago
>which is hardly converted to DHA by the body Hardly or just in small quantities? With flaxseed oil, you could just consume more of it in order to offset the low ALA/DHA conversion rate. Or is there a downside to the idea?
- adrian_b 5y ago
  The downside is that you do not know how much you should eat, because the conversion efficiency varies from human to human and it also diminishes with increasing age. Eating too much ALA, with the hope that this will be enough to ensure the DHA & EPA that you need, even in the worst case, can be harmful. Nevertheless, this is a problem mostly for those who eat little or no animal foods. Otherwise you might get enough DHA and EPA from the normal food. Actually the best source of omega-3 acids are the animal brains, which are very tasty when well cooked. However, since the Mad Cow disease, the popularity of eating brains has strongly declined, even among non-vegans.
  - Leparamour 5y ago
    > Nevertheless, this is a problem mostly for those who eat little or no animal foods. That is why I'm curious. I've been living nearly-vegan for 15 years now and I've been "supplementing" with flaxseed oil for a few years now as well (still can't get used to the taste).
marton78 5y ago
Google for Opti3 vegan capsules from a company called Vegetology. They have the highest DHA/price ratio I know.
- nate_meurer 5y ago
  On their website they have a 3-for-2 deal that is indeed the least expensive vegan DHA/EPA supplement I've seen so far. Thanks for the recommendation.
- greenbush 5y ago
  The cheapest I've found so far are Walmart's Spring Valley Omega-3, 1000 mg, 180 count for $15.48.

armedpacifist 5y ago

I've heard some people (Rhonda Patrick from the top of my mind) say that the omega 3 coming from vegan sources (nuts, seeds, algae...) would not be as efficient as their non-vegan counterpart even if they are already converted to epa/dha. I haven't been able to find any conclusive research on this though. Anyone one with some expertise is the field caring to clarify?

adrian_b 5y ago
I am not sure what you mean by organic and non-organic. The chemical synthesis of the omega-3 acids is too expensive, so all commercial products claiming to contain omega-3 acids contain such acids that have been extracted from living beings. Therefore all commercial omega-3 acids are organic. Because the omega-3 acids are expensive, they frequently are sold diluted in some other kind of oil. The oil used for dilution should be some good quality vegetable oil. Unfortunately there are cases when some junk oil is used for dilution, possibly including various garbage, e.g. colorants or flavors. Therefore, when choosing an omega-3 supplement, it is good to check the list of ingredients to see whether the good omega-oil is not mixed with a bunch of undesirable, possibly non-organic, substances. The main component, i.e. the omega-3 acids, can be found in one of 3 sources: 1. A few vegetable sources with short-chain omega-3 acids, e.g. walnut cores, flax seed or hemp seed 2. Fish oil, e.g. cod liver oil or salmon oil 3. "Algae" omega-3 oil The first group of omega-3 sources does no harm and people who eat enough animal food might not need anything else. On the other hand, people who eat little or no animal food must eat some omega-3 supplements belonging either to the second or to the third group. There is no efficiency difference between fish oil and "algae" oil. The only difference is that the "algae" oil is more expensive, but it is available for those who do not want fish oil. Like I have said, it is imperious to check the composition of any supplement, to see which is the real content in EPA and DHA and whether they are not mixed with some junk. Many omega-3 supplements appear to be cheaper, but they are diluted and their real cost per EPA+DHA may be higher than of other non-diluted supplements.
- fpoling 5y ago
  Fish oil may also contain heavy metals due to accumulation of those through food chain. Some companies claim to filter those, but with algae there is no such risk at all.

elric 5y ago

I've used both fish oil supplements and algae based supplements. The latter left a very unpleasant fishy (well, algaeal, I guess) taste in my mouth every time I burped, even when taking them with food. The fish oil supplements (paradoxically) did not have that effect.

hugi 5y ago
As an Icelander raised on Lýsi (cod liver oil) I remember fishy burps all day long as a kid. I still take Lýsi every day but the burps are gone, it's probably a couple of decades now since they perfected purification of the oil to make it mostly taste/smell free. My kids still get lýsi every day to no complaints (and it's a part of the daily routine in Icelandic kindergartens).
- adrian_b 5y ago
  Yes, I have also started recently to eat daily some cod liver oil and I have been surprised that it has only a very faint and pleasant fishy flavor. The fish oil that was available when I was a child had a much stronger and less pleasant smell.
- gls2ro 5y ago
  When is the best time to give the code liver oil to a kid? (Or maybe it does not matter) but I read multiple suggestions: in the morning after breakfast or at least 1-2 hours _before_ a meal or at least 1-2 hours _after_ a meal. Can you please share when do you give this? ( I am assuming that you have a better tradition/understanding of this)

arthur_sav 5y ago

Don't they have fish farms specifically for this purpose?

marton78 5y ago

Second that. My favourite are Opti3 from Vegetology (not affiliated, just a happyn long time customer).