They often recommend taking extra vitamin E ... small amounts of which are added to standard, refined fish oils to help stop oxidation in the capsule.
Alternately, they may suggest taking supplements of the more powerful antioxidant called astaxanthin (ass-tuh-zan-thin).
(Astaxanthin also occurs naturally in wild salmon and krill, and in unrefined krill and wild salmon oils, where it preserves the oil's integrity by blocking oxidation of omega-3s very effectively.)
Don’t get us wrong … the astaxanthin in salmon oil is an amazing antioxidant that brings its own benefits … but you don’t need to take antioxidants when you consume fish oil ... or choose a marine omega-3 oil with natural antoxidants.
Evidence for omega-3s antioxidant effects dates back several years
Seven years ago, the results of a controlled clinical trial seriously undermined the idea that the omega-3s we ingest from fish or fish oil pills might generate free radicals … and thereby increase oxidative stress in our bodies (Mori TA et al. 2003).
And as we reported in 2008, not only did the results of a cell study and four clinical studies rebut omega-3s that assertion, they showed that omega-3s lower free radical levels in the body overall, and in specific cells and tissues.
In addition to those studies, a clinical trial in healthy people also found that omega-3s produced a cut in oxidative stress. (Nalsen C et al. 2006).
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Free radicals, oxidation, inflammation, and disease
People naturally produce unstable oxygen-based molecules called free radicals as a byproduct of metabolizing foods.
Free radicals play an important role in a range of bodily functions.
But an excess of free radicals – a condition called “oxidative stress” – can overwhelm the body’s own antioxidant defenses.
Chronic oxidative stress is linked to increased risk of cancer, Alzheimer's, and cardiovascular disease.
High, hard-to-control levels of free radicals yield oxidative stress and can result from normal aging, smoking, stress, pollution, sunlight, hard exercise.
And excessive intake of sugars, white starches promotes free-radical-generating compounds called advanced glycation end products (AGEs) … an oft-overlooked but substantial source of ongoing oxidative stress.
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Now, the outcomes of a new Australian clinical trial confirm that omega-3 fish oils actually reduce levels of free radicals and oxidative stress in the body.
And, of great importance, the new findings affirm prior indications that omega-3s reduce oxidative stress by means other than via their proven inflammation-moderating effects. (The cluster of immune responses that doctors call “inflammation” invariably includes the intentional creation of free radicals.)
Aussie-French trial reaffirms the antioxidant effects of fish oil
Once again, the results of a controlled clinical trial indicate that the two major omega-3 fats in fish – EPA and DHA – reduce oxidative stress in the body (Mas E et al. 2010).
Scientists from Australia and France now report that, over a six week period, a standard measure of oxidative stress dropped by about 20 percent in people who took daily fish oil capsules providing either EPA or DHA.
The Aussie-French team recruited two groups of volunteers of 59 each:
The participants were randomly assigned to follow one of three daily supplement routines for six weeks:
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Four grams of EPA (in fish oil)
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Four grams of DHA (in fish oil)
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Refined olive oil (placebo)
People’s blood levels of compounds called F2-isoprostanes – which are created when bodily fats get oxidized by free radicals – provide an accurate picture of the levels of oxidized fats and overall oxidative stress in the body.
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Omega-3s and air don’t mix
Today’s report confirms that dietary omega-3s actually reduce free radical and oxidation levels.
But their vulnerability to rapid oxidation once exposed to air – and slower oxidation inside a harvested fish – explains why fish can start smelling funky pretty fast ... unless, like ours, it's kept cold until being flash-frozen within hours of harvest.
This also explains why quality conscious fish mongers – including Vital Choice – prefer flash-frozen fish.
While supermarket fish cases often feature frozen fish that’s been fully or partially thawed, we will sell only fish that’s been kept frozen continuously, through its delivery to your door.
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The volunteers’ levels of F2-isoprostanes were measured at the start and end of the study, to look for changes in oxidative stress levels.
The researchers reported encouraging outcomes, based on the volunteers’ before-and-after body levels of F2-isoprostanes:
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Omega-3 DHA cut the oxidative stress marker in overweight men by 14 percent.
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Omega-3 EPA cut the oxidative stress marker in overweight men by 24 percent.
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Omega-3 DHA cut the oxidative stress marker in diabetic men and women by 23 percent.
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Omega-3 EPA cut the oxidative stress marker in diabetic men and women by 19 percent.
Adding to the positive picture, blood levels of an essential but generally pro-inflammatory omega-6 fat call AA (arachidonic acid) dropped in both omega-3 groups.
Their final statement came to a clear conclusion: “The data, therefore, suggest 3 fatty acids reduce oxidative stress, which is likely related, at least in part, to their anti-inflammatory actions …” (Mas E et al. 2010)
And they made an obvious inference, given the proven role of chronic inflammation as a major factor in the formation – and potentially fatal rupture – of arterial plaque:
“These findings give further support for supplementation of the diet with 3 fatty acids for cardiovascular risk reduction.” (Mas E et al. 2010)
Note: The fish oils were supplied by the U.S. National Institutes of Health, and the study was funded by Australian non-profit and public bodies.
Did the cut in oxidative stress stem from omega-3s’ anti-inflammatory role?
Importantly, although the EPA and DHA groups showed reductions in blood levels of omega-6 AA, the scientists found no statistical link between a drop in the omega-3 groups’ average omega-6 blood levels and their substantial reductions in levels of markers for oxidative stress.
As they wrote, “Therefore, the changes in F2-isoprostanes most likely reflect a true [direct] reduction in oxidative stress, rather than resulting from a reduction in the supply of substrate [i.e., omega-6 fat].”
By this they meant that both omega-3 groups showed reductions in their blood levels of inflammation-related immune system cells called leukocytes, which normally generate free radicals.
In addition, the levels of pro-inflammatory omega-6 fats dropped in the groups taking omega-3s.
This happens gradually when you increase your omega-3 intake … and displacement of pro-inflammatory omega-6s in your cells by anti-inflammatory omega-3s happens even faster and more fully when you also lower your omega-6 intake.
The omega-6 overload in American diets
Dietary omega-6 and omega-3 fats serve as the raw material (substrate) from which our cells make key immune system agents (autocoids), which help control free-radical-generating inflammation and the oxidative stress it produces.
Omega-6 fats often serve as the source of pro-inflammatory agents and omega-3s almost always yield anti-inflammatory agents.
Sadly, the American diet is wildly imbalanced in favor of omega-6 fats – with proven bad consequences for disease risk and overall health.
This because omega-6 fats abound in the cheap vegetable oils common in kitchens and in most packaged, prepared, and restaurant foods.
Omega-6 fats predominate in most common oils other than olive, macadamia, canola, and "hi-oleic" sunflower oils.
Canola oil and soy oils alike provide higher proportions of plant-form omega-3s (6-9 percent) than other common oils (0-3 percent).
However, the higher omega-3 levels of canola oil and soy oils is a minor advantage at best, because human bodies only convert two to 10 percent of the plant-form omega-3s we eat into the long-chain, "marine" omega-3s (EPA and DHA) our bodies actually need for critical body functions.)
And both canola and soy oil are higher in omega-6 fats than the alternatives we've listed above ... with soy being much worse in this regard. (Soy oil contains about 53 percent omega-6 fat, versus about 20 percent omega-6 fat in canola.)
(The remaining fats in canola and soy are "neutral" monounsaturated fats, which predominate much more in all of the alternative oils we recommend and are more heat-resistant than omega-3 or omega-6 oils.)
If you have no other food or supplemental source of omega-3s, eating lots of soy or canola oil will meet your bare minimum omega-3 requirement ... but otherwise, they are not ideal oils.
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Higdon JV, Liu J, Du SH, Morrow JD, Ames BN, Wander RC. Supplementation of postmenopausal women with fish oil rich in eicosapentaenoic acid and docosahexaenoic acid is not associated with greater in vivo lipid peroxidation compared with oils rich in oleate and linoleate as assessed by plasma malondialdehyde and F(2)-isoprostanes. Am J Clin Nutr 2000;72:714 – 722.
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Mas E, Woodman RJ, Burke V, Puddey IB, Beilin LJ, Durand T, Mori TA. The omega-3 fatty acids EPA and DHA decrease plasma F(2)-isoprostanes: Results from two placebo-controlled interventions. Free Radic Res. 2010 Jun 14.
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Mori TA, Woodman RJ, Burke V, Puddey IB, Croft KD, Beilin LJ. Effect of eicosapentaenoic acid and docosahexaenoic acid on oxidative stress and inflammatory markers in treated-hypertensive type 2 diabetic subjects. Free Radic Biol Med. 2003 Oct 1;35(7):772-81.
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Nalsen C, Vessby B, Berglund L, Uusitupa M, Hermansen K, Riccardi G, Rivellese A, Storlien L, Erkkila A, Yla-Herttuala S, Tapsell L, Basu S. Dietary (n-3) fatty acids reduce plasma F2-isoprostanes but not prostaglandin F2alpha in healthy humans. J Nutr 2006;136:1222 – 1228.
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Quaggiotto P, Leitch JW, Falconer J, Murdoch RN, Garg ML. Plasma F2[alpha]-isoprostane levels are lowered in pigs fed an (n-3) polyunsaturated fatty acid supplemented diet following occlusion of the left anterior descending coronary artery. Nutr Res 2000;20:675 – 684.
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