Why Should You Take an Omega-3 Supplement?

For starters, both omega-6 and omega-3 fatty acids are essential—just like vitamins and minerals. That is, the body needs them; however, it cannot produce them on its own. So, you must get them through food, supplementation, or a combination of the two.

Here’s the kicker: Due to our modern industrialization, omega-3s have become largely absent from the food supply while omega-6s have become overabundant. In other words, the typical modern diet contains too many omega-6s and not enough omega-3s.

Why does that matter? Great question.

In order to maintain optimum health, the body requires a healthy balance of these essential fats. Along those lines, correcting this imbalance, which has been linked to many health issues, through foods and supplements can be beneficial for the entire body.^{Footnote †}

According to researchers, there are three main explanations for this heavy imbalance of omega fatty acids:^{Footnote †}

• A decrease in consumption of omega-3 fatty acids from freshwater fish
• The ubiquity of refined vegetable oils (e.g., soybean, safflower, sunflower, corn, canola, and cottonseed oils) present in the Western diet
• The consumption of meat from farm animals raised on oil seeds rich in omega-6 fats (e.g., corn, soy)

Obviously, reducing consumption of processed foods (which are rife with omega-6-rich oils) and low-quality products from farm-raised animals is a key step to resolving the problematic omega imbalance. On the flip side, the other crucial piece of the puzzle is making sure you’re getting plenty of omega-3 fatty acids, particularly EPA and DHA, the two most prominent omega-3 fatty acids.

Along those lines, the American Heart Association recommends adults consume a minimum of 500 mg/day of EPA and DHA, and often, more is better. The unfortunate reality is that the average person consumes only about a quarter of the recommended amount (around 135 mg/day).^{Footnote †}

You see, there are very few foods highly concentrated with these two all-star omega-3 fatty acids, with the main dietary source being cold-water fatty fish (e.g., salmon, sardines, anchovies, herring, mackerel) and other seafood (e.g., oysters, mussels).

Since many people do not consume cold-water fish regularly, using an omega-3 supplement containing DHA and EPA is recommended for healthy individuals in order to maintain a healthy balance of essential fatty acids.

What Is Omega-3 Good for?

Simply put, the omega-3 fatty acids EPA and DHA are nutrition MVPs. For starters, they are incorporated into the walls of cells (called cell membranes) that make up the various tissues (e.g., brain, retina, heart). These fats help improve the properties of cell membranes (e.g., fluidity, suppleness), and research shows that regular use of an omega-3 supplement containing DHA and EPA may provide support for proper fatty acid ratios, which in turn helps support a wide range of health benefits, including:

• Heart health^{Footnote †}
• Healthy brain function^{Footnote †}
• Mental outlook and balanced moods^{Footnote †}
• Eye health and vision^{Footnote †}
• Skin health^{Footnote †}
• Healthy immune system function^{Footnote †}
• Healthy metabolic function^{Footnote †}

Even more, EPA and DHA may also provide support for healthy aging at the cellular level by supporting a healthy balance of essential fatty acids. For example, research has shown that diets rich in the omega-3 fatty acids EPA and DHA may provide support for maintaining healthy telomere length. Telomeres are considered to be a key marker of biological age.^{Footnote †}

Conversely, excess omega-6 intake has been shown to be associated with shorter telomere lengths. Along those lines, research has shown that telomere lengths increase with decreasing ratios of omega-6 to omega-3 fatty acids. In other words, increasing intake of omega-3 fatty acids (such as by eating more cold-water fatty fish and/or using an omega-3 supplement) while reducing intake of omega-6 fats (eating fewer processed foods and meat from feedlot animals) may provide support for healthy cellular aging.^{Footnote †}

While using an omega-3 supplement may be an intelligent supplement choice, when it comes to choosing an omega-3 supplement, buyer beware!

What Makes OmegaKrill A Great Choice for an Omega-3 Supplement?

 When searching for an omega-3 supplement, you have many choices, but don’t be fooled: They’re NOT all created equal. Here are some critical questions you should be asking:

1. Potency: Has your omega-3 supplement been certified to contain the amounts claimed on the label?

According to the International Fish Oil Standards (IFOS) program, the only 3^rd party testing and certification program for fish oils that sets the world’s highest standards for purity, potency, and freshness, one unfortunate problem with omega-3 supplements is that they don’t always contain the amount of active ingredients (EPA and DHA) listed on the product label. Obviously, you can’t reap the expected benefits if your omega-3 supplement is underdelivering.

2. Contamination: How clean and safe is your omega-3 supplement?

Believe it or not, some omega-3 supplements have heavy metals or other toxins (such as PCBs, dioxins, furans, and dioxin-like PCBs), which can be potentially harmful to your health. This is why it’s so important to use a fish oil supplement that has been third-party tested – through the IFOS program, for example – to ensure that it is does not contain unsafe levels of contaminants commonly detected in omega-3 supplements.

3. Stability: How fresh is your omega-3 supplement?

Omega-3 fatty acids (such as DHA and EPA) are polyunsaturated fats that are very delicate and susceptible to oxidation, which occurs when unsaturated fats are exposed to oxygen, heat, and light. This leads to the production of free radicals and other compounds, as well as rancidification, which results in an unpleasant smell and taste.

Simply put, an omega-3 supplement that has “gone bad”, whether from poor handling by the manufacturer or passing its expiration date, may not just be stinky and taste bad; it may also be less effective

Unfortunately, many companies don’t test for rancidity or take the additional steps necessary to protect these delicate oils.

4. Application: Does your omega-3 supplement contain an optimal blend of DHA and EPA?

Most people tend to refer to the two omega-3 fatty acids DHA and EPA as if they are one and the same, leading many to believe they are interchangeable and provide support for similar health benefits. However, DHA and EPA each have very specific functions, and along those lines, they provide support for unique and distinct health benefits.

While EPA is indeed important and seems to be closely correlated to mood and feelings of wellbeing, DHA generally exceeds EPA by 5- to 30-fold in most tissues of the body. In fact, DHA is the most predominant fatty acid in the brain and eye tissue, where it is several HUNDRED-fold more abundant than EPA.^{Footnote †}

Along those lines, DHA has been shown to provide support for healthy brain function. DHA has also been found to have positive effects on key markers of heart health.^{Footnote †}

One particularly nifty attribute of DHA is that the body can convert it, on an as-needed basis, to EPA. However, the opposite is NOT true, meaning the body can’t convert EPA to DHA.^{Footnote †}  Traditionally, the typical omega-3 supplement contains predominantly EPA. However, research indicates that DHA may provide more targeted nutritional support.

The unfortunate reality is that there are many untested omega-3 supplements that don’t provide optimal amounts of DHA and EPA.

That’s exactly why we developed OmegaKrill, which we truly believe is the right omega-3 supplement for you.

• OmegaKrill has earned the prestigious 5-STAR rating from the International Fish Oil Standards program (IFOS), the only third-party fish oil testing and certification program that sets the world’s highest standards for potency, purity, and freshness.
• Compared to the typical fish oil supplement, OmegaKrill contains substantially more DHA, which provide support for heart, brain, and eye health.^{Footnote †} Each daily serving of OmegaKrill provides 1040mg of DHA.
• It provides the omega-3 fatty acids in their natural triglyceride form to best preserve the delicate oils and support optimal absorption.^{Footnote †}
• It’s formulated with AstaReal^® Astaxanthin, “one of nature’s powerful antioxidants,” which helps visual acuity, cognitive function, a healthy inflammation response, skin elasticity and hydration, and it provides antioxidant support for a healthy immune system.^{Footnote †} Each serving of OmegaKrill provides 3mg of Astaxanthin.
• It incorporates the expensive Supercritical CO2 extraction technology, which gently and efficiently purifies and concentrates omega-3 fatty acids without the use of heat.
• Thoughtfully and carefully designed and manufactured to be a burp-less formula.
• All this in just 3 small softgels daily.

Simply put, we believe OmegaKrill is the best omega-3 supplement and sets the bar.