The Benefits of Fish Oil for Men: Stronger Muscles & Improved Sexual Function

Leave a reply

Fish Oil Increases Muscle Mass for Men!Men, you may want to stand at attention for this one.



You can now count improved sexual function, increased muscle growth, and even a reduced risk of prostate cancer among fish oil’s many benefits.



But let’s start with the most uncomfortable topic to talk about: sexuality. Erections are really at the core of male sexuality. Sometimes, though, erections can be a little difficult to keep going. Why, though? Erections are, as most guys know, a matter of blood circulation. Without proper circulation, and of course, arousal, getting an erection can be a hard task. Thankfully, studies have shown that the fatty acids in fish oil not only help decrease blood pressure but also increase circulation! So what, you may ask, does that have to do keeping your little guy standing straight? Well, studies suggest that fish oil can clear arterial plaque and increase the elasticity of arterial walls. In simpler terms, fish oil can help your soldier troop on longer. That’s something that doesn’t just benefit us guys.



Let’s not forget everything else, though. Fish oil has a variety of benefits that we discuss elsewhere on this blog. But like most guys, we sometimes need to see more tangible results to do something good for us. And what better result could there be than some added muscle mass? Fish oil is a great supplement to a healthy diet and exercise to help build and maintain muscle mass. I think everybody likes the idea of being more toned and just generally stronger. So, guys, muscle mass AND erections? What’s not to love?



A study published by Cancer Prevention Research (see references for full details) suggests that fish oil and a healthy diet low in animal products and fats but high in superfoods and omega-3′s (the stuff fish oil is full of) can actually slow down the spread of prostate cancer. As men age, they slowly become at risk for prostate cancer. The study, done on 50 male participants, involved an alteration of diet and the consumption of 5 grams of fish oil daily. The researchers found that within 4-6 weeks, the size and growth of cancer cells actually reduced.

Sounds like something we can all stand up for.






Sources

Prostate cancer: 

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22027686
Sperm count

: 

http://www.nbr.co.nz/article/fish-oil-may-treat-male-infertility-122533
Muscle mass: http://www.ajcn.org/content/93/2/402.abstract 


Blood pressure: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/8339414 


The CardioTabs Brand: A Fish Oil Review

Leave a reply

About the Company: The CardioTabs brand is one of the few companies to produce a fish oil product that has been “developed by cardiologists”. They have been making nutrition supplements for over 10 years and their products are distributed by Good Things Health.

What Makes Them Different: The company sent over two products for us to review: CardioTabs Omega-3 and CardioTabs Omega-3 + D3. According to the company, their products are gluten-free and can be taken with other medications.

However, this is certainly true of all high quality fish oil supplements. You can read more about the safety of mixing fish oil products with drugs like statins here.

CardioTabs uses enteric coated fish oil capsules. Theoretically, this should minimize any fish oil side effects related to digestion. They also include citrus flavoring to improve the taste, should you choose to break open the capsules.

CardioTabs is not rated by the International Fish Oil Standards (IFOS) program. However, the director of supply chain and compliance had this to say about the quality of their products “On our Omega-3 Extra Strength purity report, you will notice three chemicals as “detected”. When you compare these chemicals to Proposition 65, which states safe harbor levels for cancer-causing chemicals and for chemicals causing reproductive toxicity, you will notice copper and mercury figures do not appear on the list and the safe harbor level for arsenic (10 micro grams/day) is well above our level (.365 ppm or .399 micrograms per capsule). I hope this explanation helps and that there isn’t any confusion upon review”.

Supplement Facts: CardioTabs Omega-3 Extra Strength + Vitamin D3 is not natural triglyceride form. Instead, it is an ethyl-ester based fish oil and 2 capsules contain 1,300 mg of omega-3 fatty acids. We had enough samples to test this particular product using the styrofoam cup method, see the results of our fish oil test. Three capsules of CardioTabs Omega-3 contain 1,050 mg of concentrated omega-3 fish oil (sardine, anchovy, squid and mackerel). There is no indication as to the form this fish oil is in, though we assume it too is ethyl-ester based. Curious about which fish oil should you take?

Other Ingredients: Omega-3 Extra Strength + Vitamin D3 also contains gelatin, glycerine and purified water, orange flavor, mixed natural tocopherols, natural berry flavor, vitamin D3. CardioTabs Omega-3 also contains gelatin, glycerine and purified water), enteric coating (food glaze, sodium alginate, natural lemon flavor, steric acid, lemon flavor, natural mixed tocopherols (soy).

Our Opinion: Because of issues with potency and purity, we only recommend IFOS-certified fish oils. IFOS, the International Fish Oil Standards program extends third-party lab testing to fish oil manufacturers looking to guarantee quality to consumers (visit the program’s site here). IFOS tests for toxic substances commonly detected in fish oil products like peroxide, totox, lead, mercury, dioxins & furans, and PCBs. Fish oils only receive a 5-star rating by passing lab tests that exceed standards set by the Council for Responsible Nutrition, European Pharmacopeia, and the Norwegian Medicinal Standards…the three major health supplement regulating bodies.

Additionally, the concentrations listed in their products are only marginally higher than brands in a similar class (that is, ethyl-ester based fish oil). Unfortunately, one of the samples (Omega-3 Extra Strength + Vitamin D3) we received had a horrible smell. This is not a good sign in your fish oil & usually indicates there has been some oxidation. Of course, this was just our experience and may not be representative of CardioTabs’ normal supply.

If you are making a choice between generic fish oil supplements found at your local drugstore and CardioTabs, go with the latter. We give them a “thumbs up” for at least using enteric coated capsules and sustainably sourced DHA and EPA.

Omega 3 DHA: Higher Doses Improve Early Childhood Development

Leave a reply

According to a new study published in the British Journal of Nutrition, higher doses of omega-3 DHA improve early childhood development.

Notice the researchers did not say the supplements were “linked to” early childhood improvements, but instead suggest that improvements are directly caused by DHA-enriched omega-3.

That’s a pretty big deal.

One of the ways scientists are able to move away from making statements about relationships among variables and toward making specific claims is by introducing more control into their study’s design.

The present study was conducted by scientists at the School of Paediatrics and Child Health over at the University of Western Australia. The researchers already knew fish oil was important during early childhood, but wanted to prove it.

More from FishOilBlog.com: A Parent’s Guide to Fish Oil

To do that, over 400 infants were recruited to participate in the study. After being chosen at random, the children were given either a daily fish oil supplement containing 250mg of DHA + 60mg of EPA, or a placebo containing olive oil for a period of 6 months.

When the children turned 18 months old, they were tested using a variety of assessments designed to measure their brain development and language skills.

The results, according to lead researcher Suzanne Meldrum, indicated that “children in the [fish oil] group had significantly higher percentile ranks of both later developing gestures at 12 and 18 months and the total number of gestures“.

In other words, a statistically significant number of toddlers showed an increase in both the frequency and variety of non-verbal communication. Many parents will recognize these non-verbals as crucial milestones seen just before children begin saying their first words.

As with all scientific studies, these findings need to be replicated before they can be confirmed.

Source: Effects of high-dose fish oil supplementation during early infancy on neurodevelopment and language: a randomised controlled trial.

Is this omega-3 supplement any good? A 5 Minute Checklist

Leave a reply

Most people get fed-up with the marketing hype centered around fish oil and omega-3 supplements. Depending on your perspective, choosing a supplement is either super easy or ridiculously complicated. There are literally hundreds, if not thousands, of brands to choose from. In fact, it’s one of the most frequently asked questions we get.

What’s the difference in omega-3 brands?

It all boils down to quality. Figuring out which brand is better is normally just a matter of spending a few minutes doing a little investigative research online.

Here is a quick and easy checklist I run through to help me evaluate a fish oil brand:

  • Does it have a 5-star IFOS rating?
  • Does the label clearly tell you what form it’s in?
  • Is the cost per unit reasonable?
  • Is there anything weird in the ingredient list?
  • Is it affordable, overall?
  • Is there a return policy?

What I typically do is search for the brand name online. First, I try to locate the manufacturer’s direct website. Sometimes this is not always an easy task…I’ll settle for a retailer’s website if I can’t find one. The product info on the site is nice, but what I look for is the actual supplement label.

Normally, I can answer most items on my checklist just by looking at the label. If not, I tend to get skeptical. After all — what do they have to hide?

Now, let’s ‘unpack’ that checklist…what exactly are we looking for?

IFOS ratings

These IFOS stars tell you about purity. It’s a matter of personal preference I suppose, but taking potentially contaminated nutrition supplements seems like a bad idea to me.

Form

I’m looking for ethyl-ester or natural triglyceride form because it tells you how easily absorbed the fish oil is. If the label doesn’t say — I pass. Not interested in a wild-goose hunt, thank you very much.

Cost per unit

Unit prices are helpful; unit prices based on actual omega-3 is better. Who cares if the inactive-ingredients are cheap? This step will get you if you don’t pay attention to the form of omega-3s. Absorption rates fluctuate from as much as 24% to 70%; make sure you’re not comparing apples to oranges here.

Ingredients

Speaking of inactive components, I’ve seen some pretty strange ones. Vitamin E is ok, but that’s about all I want to see besides the omega-3s. Don’t just think about ingredients inside, either. Omega-3s are prone to spoilage, especially when they’re exposed to direct sunlight. I look for opaque (white) packaging

Overall price

You can find a high quality supplement for around $20. I’m still a student so this is my personal budget-friendly limit. Yours may be different, but it’s best to decide on a budget up-front to avoid spending large sums of money.

Returns

Money-back guarantees are gold. This is the ultimate risk-free option, and for me, it’s a deal breaker. With so many choices on the market, having a decent return policy gives you a chance to hedge your bets a little.

I hope this checklist helps. Let me know what strategies help you decide on a fish oil by leaving a comment!

Vegetarian Omega-3: A Detailed Review of Ovega-3 Featuring life’sDHA

Leave a reply

Most people think omega-3 comes from fish, but that’s not entirely true. It actually comes from tiny algae. The fish eat the algae, you eat the fish, and voila…you get the omega-3s.

Until recently, it’s just been too time-consuming and expensive to make omega-3 supplements directly from algae. But Martek seems to have figured it out.

About the Company: Ovega-3 is distributed by Amerifit, who also distributes quite a few health and wellness products. Ovega-3 is “powered by” (uses) Life’sDHA, which is a trademark of Martek Biosciences Corporation, a company that advertises, produces, and sells supplements.

What Makes Them Different: As one of the few manufacturers of truly vegetarian omega-3, Life’sDHA comes from Schizochytrium sp., a really big word for a very small algae that is naturally high in DHA and EPA. It is one of the more popular blends in the U.S.

In fact, over 99% of fortified baby formulas use Life’sDHA. The DHA and EPA used comes directly from the source, which means that it’s processed less, offers better availability, and is harvested in an eco-friendly way.

Supplement Facts: You can expect a minimum of 500 mg of total omega-3s, which includes 320 mg of DHA and 130 mg of EPA.

Other Ingredients: Modified cornstarch, carrageenan, glycerin, sorbital, water, beta-carotene, caramel.

Taste: Definitely not fishy! Marshall and I had to agree to disagree on Ovega-3’s taste. Marshall found the taste very mild and somewhat algae-ish, whereas I found it downright unpleasant. In my opinion, the taste is very similar to a multi-vitamin that contains beta-carotene (think Centrum Complete). The upside is that the softgels are very smooth, easy to swallow, and the taste disappears after a few seconds.

Quality: Ovega-3 with Life’sDHA is not rated by the International Fish Oil Standards (IFOS) program. However, you can take a look at their product specification sheet here.

Our Opinion: This product uses omega-3s in a non-fish form, which is pretty outstanding.

For strict vegetarians, finding an omega-3 supplement that doesn’t come from fish can be a challenge. What’s more, it hasn’t always been easy to track down an algae supplement with EPA. Up until this point, algae-based omega-3 has not been affordable or even readily available.

Also, Ovega-3 is a much better alternative to flaxseed oil for vegetarians. Countless studies have proven that flax is an inferior source of omega-3. The problem is that flax offers short-chain omega-3s in the form of ALA (read more about the differences here).

The research is clear that only about 15% of ALA can be converted by the body into the more beneficial EPA and DHA long-chain omega-3 fatty acids. Thus, the amount of flax required to achieve health benefits is staggering. When compared to fish oil, 7x more flax is often needed to see the same effects.

More from FishOilBlog.com: Fish Oil vs Flax

We’d love to see the DHA and EPA in a little higher concentration, but Life’sDHA is comparable to other high quality fish oil supplements on the market. While there are higher concentrations out there, this product is a nice tradeoff since you’re getting the omega-3s from their actual source.

The risk of contamination from toxic chemicals like heavy metals is reduced since it comes from algae and not fish.

Another thing we noticed was that Life’sDHA uses a higher ratio of DHA to EPA. In most fish oil products, these two ingredients are flipped (EPA is higher).

DHA has been shown in studies to have positive health benefits for pregnant women and their infants. DHA is a natural ingredient found in breast milk, and makes up 97% of omega-3s in the brain. This particular omega-3 is important for:

  • Healthy brain functioning
  • Maternal health
  • Birth weight
  • Vision
  • Cardivascular health
  • Preventing cognitive decline associated with aging

Update: We received the following message from the manager of brand public relations “Given the recent acquisition by DSM, Martek is now under the DSM Nutritional Products group.  There will be no significant changes to consumers.  The life’sDHA brand will continue to be the name that consumers recognize within the fortified-food, beverage and supplement industries”.

Fish Oil Supplements During Pregnancy Can Dramatically Reduce Infant’s Eczema & Egg Allergy Risk

Leave a reply

With 1 out of every 5 people in the world suffering from a disease brought on, or made worse, by allergies — pregnant women will want to take note of this study that was recently published in the British Medical Journal because it points to new research suggesting that daily fish oil supplements can decrease infants’ allergies by over 38%.

The study, conducted in Australia, is unique because it publishes findings from a clinical trial involving more than 700 pregnant women with higher than normal risks for passing on allergies to their children. To date, this study is the largest of it’s kind.

What did the study look at?

Researchers were particularly interested in finding out if a daily fish oil supplement would have any effect on the child’s allergy susceptibility during their first year. The women in the experimental group were all given 900mg of omega-3 fatty acids from fish oil for a total of 21 weeks (before giving birth). Note: When you see mgs of fish oil, this does not mean you are getting the same mgs of omega-3; you’ll want to check the label facts to see how many mgs of omega-3 your fish oil actually contains.

Because Immunoglobulin E is linked with allergies like eczema and other food sensitivities, that’s what the scientists decided to measure in this study.

Some quick & interesting facts on allergies

Eczema, which is sometimes referred to as atopic dermatitis, is a skin condition characterized by rashes that are quite itchy and leave scaly patches on the surface of the skin. According to the National Center for Biotechnology Information, the actual cause of this condition “is due to a hypersensitivity reaction (similar to an allergy) in the skin, which leads to long-term swelling and redness (inflammation) of the skin”.

Food sensitivities are well-known ‘triggers’ for skin conditions like eczema, and are quite common. Eggs are particularly notorious since they’re listed as number 2 on the FDA’s top 8 food allergens (you can see the other 7 here).

Risks were dramatically reduced when pregnant women took fish oil

After 12 months, children whose mother’s received a daily fish oil supplement were 38% less likely to suffer from eczema. Interestingly, those same children were also 50% less likely to suffer from egg allergies.

While this study is certainly the largest to be conducted on pregnant women, it is not the only one. Indeed, two other significant studies (like this one and this one) also seem to suggest that allergies and  certain inflammatory diseases can be prevented before they ever become a problem.

Source: Effect on n-3 long chain polyunsaturated fatty acid supplementation in pregnancy on infants’ allergies in first year of life: radomised controlled trial; BMJ 2012;344:e184

Fish Oil Ingredient has “Pretty Big Effect” on Heart Health, says Researcher

Leave a reply

A new study shows fish oil benefits for heart health include a significantly reduced risk for irregular heart beats, a condition known as atrial fibrillation or arrhythmia.

Background info

The American Heart Association reports that around 3 million Americans live with irregular heartbeats, a condition known as Atrial Fibrillation (AF) or Arrhythmia. Not unlike other heart disease risk factors, such as smoking and obesity, irregular heartbeats are cause for concern. You can read about symptoms and patient experiences here.

According to the Mayo Clinic, these common heart conditions can lead to serious health complications that require immediate medical intervention when left untreated. With AF, “the heart’s two upper chambers (the atria) beat chaotically and irregularly — out of coordination with the two lower chambers (the ventricles) of the heart”.

With as scary as that sounds, mounting evidence indicates that prevention is possible.

In fact, a number of studies suggest that the omega-3s found in fortified foods, seafood and fish oil supplements seem to have a protective effect on cardiovascular health.

However, a new study recently published by researchers at the Harvard School of Public Health, shows that fish oil — perhaps more than than seafood and other fortified foodstuffs –might be the better first-line of defense against arrhythmia and AF conditions.

Current study & findings

Interested in locating objective data on the protective heart benefits of omega-3s, Dr. Dariush Mozaffarian launched a massive 14yr scientific exploration. This newest study, which differs from earlier research involving self-reported data on omega-3 intake, meticulously analyzed blood samples from over 3,330 participants in order to gain objective statistics.

Importantly, Dr. Mozaffarian’s findings revealed that not 1, but 3 important ingredients in fish oil (EPA, DHA, & DPA) do in fact play a considerable role in heart health. You can read more about the EPA and DHA here and here.

In particular, people with higher levels of the above mentioned omega-3s experience significantly less events involving irregular heart beats over a period of 14 years.

How much less? Try 30%!!

In a statement issued to Reuters Health, Dr. Mozaffarian told correspondents that “a 30 percent lower risk of the most common chronic arrhythmia in the United States population is a pretty big effect”.

Can’t argue with that.

Implications

Dr. Mozaffarian was careful to point out that “any given fish species can vary in its omega-3s by 10-fold“, something to consider if you’re looking to add more of this heart-healthy superfood into your diet.

Naturally, researchers and physicians alike are currently looking into whether fish oil supplements should be used as a first line of prevention against atrial fibrillation.

You should, too.

Here are some other studies on the fish oil benefits for heart health worth checking out:

5 Heart-Healthy Fish Oil Benefits Proven by Research

Fish Oil Used in Europe, not US, to Treat Heart Attacks

Men Who Take Fish Oil are 33% Less Likely to Suffer Heart Failure

Source: Association of Plasma Phospholipid Long-Chain Omega-3 Fatty Acids with Incident Atrial Fibrillation in Older Adults: The Cardiovascular Health Study