Posted by Larry Hoover on October 19, 2002, at 18:17:42
In reply to Re: Fish Oil - A Silly Question, posted by Dinah on August 18, 2002, at 19:51:19
> In fish oil concentrate supplements, is there any chance of getting a concentration of pollution contamination, such as mercury?
Mercury and other heavy metals are not soluble in fat; they bind tightly to protein, which is why they are toxic. Independent lab findings show that there is no detectable mercury, or other heavy metals, in fish oils sold for human consumption.
There are other contaminants, though. These include PCBs, pesticides, dioxin, and many more. There is nothing unique about fish oil in that respect, however. The whole food chain is irrevocably contaminated. You get these contaminants in every meal you eat. Your McDonald's hamburger hits you just as hard, but goes about it silently.
The general scientific consensus is that the benefits of fish oil far, far outweigh the risks. Apart from mood stabilization, these include: reductions in blood pressure, improvement of HDL/LDL cholesterol ratio, reduction in the tendency for blood to coagulate (important for fibro sufferers), reduced risk of atherosclerosis and occlusive stroke, reduction in fasting triglycerides, protection against type 2 diabetes, protection against bowel and prostate cancer, and anti-inflammatory effects.
About fish oil in particular. I've found two government test documents that specifically refer to contaminants in fish oil. The first one (it requires Adobe Acrobat to view it) deals with British fish oil supplements, but I don't think it
matters much. Fish oil is a world commodity, just like wheat and pork bellies. You're eating the same stuff. Fish liver oils contain more toxic
contaminants than do fish body oils, because the liver binds toxins to destroy them. You shouldn't use fish liver oils exclusively, anyway, because
they contain so much vitamins that you can overdose. The take-home messageis that fish oils contain less than the very conservative level of
contaminants known as the TDI, or Tolerable Daily Intake of POPs (Persistent Organic Pollutants).The second report deals with fish meal and fish oil as used in aquaculture(farmed fish) in Canada. Fish oil sold for human consumption is purified from this crude oil used for fish feed supplements. So these contaminant loads are not representative of commercial fish oils sold for human consumption in North America, but you can get an idea of the scope of the pollution problem. You are being protected. Testing is being done.
http://www.foodstandards.gov.uk/multimedia/pdfs/26diox.pdf
http://www.inspection.gc.ca/english/anima/feebet/dioxe.shtml
poster:Larry Hoover
thread:116721
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20021019/msgs/124291.html