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What is the right fish oil dosage? I constantly see questions about how much fish oil should I take.
How much fish oil should you take? What is the recommended dosage of fish oil capsules for someone who has heart disease already? Should they take more fish oil supplements?
The first place to look is the website of the American Heart Association. They recognize the heart benefits of Omega 3 fatty acids, and they deal with the question of what is the proper dosage of fish oil for both people with no preexisting heart problems, and for those who do have preexisting heart conditions.
Lets look at what they recommend.
First though I'd like to consider where the fish oil you take should come from. Now you could just eat fish. But as well as being expensive there are other problems.
Fish can be contaminated and for this reason the FDA tell us not to eat too much.
This doesn't apply to the best fish oil supplements, they go through a rigorous process to ensure that they are free from contaminants. Note that not all fish oil supplements are free from contaminants.
And there are also differences in the amount of Omega 3 polyunsaturated fats you get from different fish types, the best being oily fish. How do you know how much you're getting?
The AHA tells us that people with no known heart disease problems should have a minimum of 2 fish meals a week, of the right fish. But for the previously stated reasons it's not so easy. What if fish is to expensive for you?
The AHA recommendation also includes the statement that evidence from prospective secondary prevention studies suggests that taking EPA+DHA ranging from 0.5 to 1.8 grams per day (either as fatty fish or supplements) significantly reduces deaths from heart disease and all causes.
So as a general rule, for healthy people, around .5 to 1.8 grams of EPA and DHA a day from fish or fish oil supplements. That's the best recommendation from the AHA, though not exact.
And for people who have heart disease already:
For those with documented Coronary Heart Disease: 1 gram of EPA and DHA a day. (Note that those with known heart health problems should consult a doctor before starting any supplements).
And 2 to 4 grams a day if you have triglycerides that need lowering.
So those are more specific. Lets look somewhere else.
There was a new study published just recently in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology that suggests at least 500 mg (half a gram) per day for healthy people and 800 to 1000 mg for those with known cardio vascular issues.
Now next we need to ask what ratio we should look for between EPA and DHA, the 2 major Omega 3 fats. There is no AHA recommendation, it's still under study.
So, what conclusion can we draw? We can see that people with known heart disease should take more fish oil than those without.
We don't know what ratio we should aim for between EPA and DHA, but otherwise it's reasonably clear.
Around 500 mg (1/2 gram) minimum of EPA and DHA a day for healthy people, and around 1000 mg (1 gram) a day for known heart disease patients, perhaps double for lowering triglycerides.
The best fish oil supplements have 400 mg of DHA and EPA combined, being 280 mg of DHA and 120 mg of EPA. That's around double that of your "average" fish oil capsules.
2 capsules a day give you 800 mg a day, about right. And the label tells us that we should take 2 capsules a day.
The conclusion therefore is that if you use the best fish oil supplements and have no known preexisting heart problems, just follow the recommended dosages listed on the label. Other fish oil supplements may require you to take 4 or 5 or more capsules, depending on the quantity of Omega 3 fats in the capsules.
So I hope that helps a little for those looking for the correct fish oil dosage. There's no exact recommendations, it's still being studied.
But taking the recommendations of the AHA as a basis, we can draw some conclusions about the recommended dosage for fish oil supplements.
And those dosage conclusions correspond with the dosage recommendations of the best Omega 3 supplements money can buy. Take 2 capsules day for general heart health.
Visit my website to find out which are the best Omega 3 supplements giving you around twice as much Omega 3 fats as others.
How much fish oil should you take? What is the recommended dosage of fish oil capsules for someone who has heart disease already? Should they take more fish oil supplements?
The first place to look is the website of the American Heart Association. They recognize the heart benefits of Omega 3 fatty acids, and they deal with the question of what is the proper dosage of fish oil for both people with no preexisting heart problems, and for those who do have preexisting heart conditions.
Lets look at what they recommend.
First though I'd like to consider where the fish oil you take should come from. Now you could just eat fish. But as well as being expensive there are other problems.
Fish can be contaminated and for this reason the FDA tell us not to eat too much.
This doesn't apply to the best fish oil supplements, they go through a rigorous process to ensure that they are free from contaminants. Note that not all fish oil supplements are free from contaminants.
And there are also differences in the amount of Omega 3 polyunsaturated fats you get from different fish types, the best being oily fish. How do you know how much you're getting?
The AHA tells us that people with no known heart disease problems should have a minimum of 2 fish meals a week, of the right fish. But for the previously stated reasons it's not so easy. What if fish is to expensive for you?
The AHA recommendation also includes the statement that evidence from prospective secondary prevention studies suggests that taking EPA+DHA ranging from 0.5 to 1.8 grams per day (either as fatty fish or supplements) significantly reduces deaths from heart disease and all causes.
So as a general rule, for healthy people, around .5 to 1.8 grams of EPA and DHA a day from fish or fish oil supplements. That's the best recommendation from the AHA, though not exact.
And for people who have heart disease already:
For those with documented Coronary Heart Disease: 1 gram of EPA and DHA a day. (Note that those with known heart health problems should consult a doctor before starting any supplements).
And 2 to 4 grams a day if you have triglycerides that need lowering.
So those are more specific. Lets look somewhere else.
There was a new study published just recently in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology that suggests at least 500 mg (half a gram) per day for healthy people and 800 to 1000 mg for those with known cardio vascular issues.
Now next we need to ask what ratio we should look for between EPA and DHA, the 2 major Omega 3 fats. There is no AHA recommendation, it's still under study.
So, what conclusion can we draw? We can see that people with known heart disease should take more fish oil than those without.
We don't know what ratio we should aim for between EPA and DHA, but otherwise it's reasonably clear.
Around 500 mg (1/2 gram) minimum of EPA and DHA a day for healthy people, and around 1000 mg (1 gram) a day for known heart disease patients, perhaps double for lowering triglycerides.
The best fish oil supplements have 400 mg of DHA and EPA combined, being 280 mg of DHA and 120 mg of EPA. That's around double that of your "average" fish oil capsules.
2 capsules a day give you 800 mg a day, about right. And the label tells us that we should take 2 capsules a day.
The conclusion therefore is that if you use the best fish oil supplements and have no known preexisting heart problems, just follow the recommended dosages listed on the label. Other fish oil supplements may require you to take 4 or 5 or more capsules, depending on the quantity of Omega 3 fats in the capsules.
So I hope that helps a little for those looking for the correct fish oil dosage. There's no exact recommendations, it's still being studied.
But taking the recommendations of the AHA as a basis, we can draw some conclusions about the recommended dosage for fish oil supplements.
And those dosage conclusions correspond with the dosage recommendations of the best Omega 3 supplements money can buy. Take 2 capsules day for general heart health.
Visit my website to find out which are the best Omega 3 supplements giving you around twice as much Omega 3 fats as others.
About the Author:
Want to know more about the Benefits of Fish Oil? Or about how to get the right Fish Oil Dosage? Visit Peter's Website Healthy Omega 3 Fish Oil.
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