Why the price of cod liver oil jumped higher so dramatically these days

Last year you may have paid about $23 for a bottle of cod liver oil bought online. Today it's more like $35 or so, more in retail stores. Look at some baby food jars in the local supermarket and you may see DHA added to help the brain development of babies. And the DHA perhaps comes from fish oil.

According to an article in Time magazine, research has shown that since 2006, the U.S. market for omega-3 supplements has doubled, to an estimated $1 billion, and that doesn't count the billions of dollars more that consumers paid for infant formula, orange juice, breakfast cereals and a host of other products that have added these wonder nutrients. But how safe from PCBs and other contaminants is the fish oil you take as a supplement or in put into your packaged foods? For example, DHA from fish oil is added to some jars of baby foods.

In fact so many fish are being taken out of circulation to make fish oil so people can drink their DHA and omega 3 fatty acids, that there's a shortage of fish, and some people are turning to calamari oil or krill oil to save sea life from over-fishing just to get a dose of omega 3 that's widely touted on TV and in consumer magazines as being good for the brain, arteries, and cholesterol as well as anti-aging. So what's the future of fish oil?

There are over 100 fish oil supplement products on the market, according to the FishOilSafety.com site, and you, the consumer, have no way of knowing whether some have more or less PCB contamination than the ones we have tested. FishOilSafety.com will be doing more testing and more analysis. The organization also plans to ask the manufacturers to commit to doing meaningful testing themselves (and making the results public so consumers can make informed choices). In the meantime, these results give consumers a way to make comparisons among these 10 products, with more information to come.

Evaluate Your Fish Oil

First of all, there's no spoilage in the fish oil brand named in the January 2012 Consumer Reports issue on testing fish oil. In fact, Consumer report published a correction in the February 2012 issue.

When you look at studies of fish oil locally, in the Sacramento and Davis regional areas, the University of California Davis, studies how a mother's diet may influence her baby's allergies. Our dietary intake of fish and nut oils is being replaced by corn oils which contain a different kind of fatty acid. That's the problem in nutrition today. See the UC Davis Nutrition Briefs PDF file article, "Strategies to Prevent Food Allergies in Infants and Children."

A diet containing fish or walnut oil during pregnancy may make your baby smarter. Until now, several clinical trials have shown that fish and walnut oil supplementation in pregnant women reduces the risk of allergy in their children, but the mechanism was unknown.

A possible link between what a mother eats during pregnancy and the risk of her child developing allergies has been identified in new research published in this month's The Journal of Physiology.

Consumer Reports Notes Error in Testing Fish Oil

Consumer reports may have made a mistake saying a specific brand of fish oil capsule has spoilage when it does not have spoilage. The added lemon oil messed up the test. See the December 19, 2011 article, by Timothy Boyer, "Fish Oil Pill Contamination Finding Revised."

Looks like testing made a mistake, but a correction from the testing lab helps. Imagine what the report must have done to the company. Since I paid hundreds of dollars for many containers of these fish oil capsules for the family use, I'm glad a correction was made and I can keep the closet full of fish oil for personal use without worrying about contamination.

To help consumers make cost-effective buying decisions of fish oil pills that adhere to claims labeled on their packaging, the January 2012 issue of Consumer Reports issued its analysis of what its independent laboratory assessment revealed, according to the Emax Health article, "Fish Oil Pill Contamination Finding Revised."

The claim in question challenged by the fish oil pill manufacturer Nordic Naturals, was that samples of Nordic Naturals brand fish oil pills tested positive for compounds that indicate spoilage. As a result of the finding of spoilage by Consumer Reports, Nordic Naturals Ultimate Omega brand of fish oil pill was listed as “not meeting quality standards” per Consumer Reports’ concluding report.

Recently, Consumer Reports has announced that the detection of spoilage compounds in samples of Nordic Naturals Ultimate Omega fish oil pills may be due to an error caused by lemon oil that is added to Nordic Naturals’ fish oil pills, but not in other brands. The lemon oil is used to help reduce the fishy taste that often accompanies fish oil pills. According to the Consumer Reports website, they are revising their finding with respect to the Nordic Naturals brand of fish oil pill and have issued the following statement:

“Upon further review, we have found that the industry-standard spoilage test we used cannot reliably detect spoilage in products with lemon oil, and we could not identify any current well-established methodology for doing so. (Nordic Naturals was the only lemon-flavored product in our study.)

"Because the spoilage test cannot be applied, we couldn't keep Nordic Naturals Ultimate Omega in a report that required all products to undergo all tests. Nordic Naturals did meet every other quality measure in our study. The pills, which cost about 67 cents per day, or $243 per year, contained their labeled amount of omega-3 fatty acids and met other U.S. Pharmacopeia (USP) and European Union standards, including those for contaminants such as lead, mercury and dioxins.

"They also met the stricter California Proposition 65 standard for total polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs). A correction will appear in the February 2012 issue of Consumer Reports magazine.”

Reference: Consumer Reports. Also watch the video at that website. Consumer Reports notes, "Correction: The version of this story that appears in the January 2012 issue of Consumer Reports magazine reported that our tests found "elevated levels of compounds that indicate spoilage" in samples of Nordic Naturals Ultimate Omega 1000mg (180 count). Just as digital versions of the story were being readied for publication, however, the company challenged our conclusion based on the fact that its product includes natural lemon oil as a flavoring.

"Upon further review, we have found that the industry-standard spoilage test we used cannot reliably detect spoilage in products with lemon oil, and we could not identify any current well-established methodology for doing so. (Nordic Naturals was the only lemon-flavored product in our study.) Because the spoilage test cannot be applied, we couldn't keep Nordic Naturals Ultimate Omega in a report that required all products to undergo all tests.

"Nordic Naturals did meet every other quality measure in our study. The pills, which cost about 67 cents per day, or $243 per year, contained their labeled amount of omega-3 fatty acids and met other U.S. Pharmacopeia (USP) and European Union standards, including those for contaminants such as lead, mercury and dioxins. They also met the stricter California Proposition 65 standard for total polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs). A correction will appear in the February 2012 issue of Consumer Reports magazine." See, Consumer Reports magazine: February 2012.

Also see the following articles or abstracts of studies:

Maternal nutritional history predicts obesity in adult offspring independent of postnatal diet.

Effects of a dietary and environmental prevention program on the incidence of allergic symptoms in high atopic risk infants: three years follow-up.

Effects of a dietary and environmental prevention programme on the incidence of allergic symptoms in high atopic risk infants: three years follow-up.

Multiple food allergy: a possible diagnosis in breastfed infants.

Long chain fatty acids and dietary fats in fetal nutrition.

Cows's milk allergy: newborns.

According to the latest study noted in the news realease, "Mother's diet influences baby's allergies -- new research," The research found that if a mother's diet contains a certain group of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) – such as those found in fish, walnut oil or flaxseed – the baby's gut develops differently. The PUFAs are thought to improve how gut immune cells respond to bacteria and foreign substances, making the baby less likely to suffer from allergies.

Until now, several clinical trials have shown that fish and walnut oil supplementation in pregnant women reduces the risk of allergy in their children, but the mechanism was unknown.

"There is intense research interest in maternal diet during pregnancy. In the western diet, the group of polyunsaturated fatty acids that we have shown to help gut function are actually disappearing – our dietary intake of fish and nut oils is being replaced by corn oils which contain a different kind of fatty acid". Said Dr Gaëlle Boudry, of the INRA research institute in Rennes, France, according to the news release.

Are too many pregnant women avoiding long-chain fatty acids?

You have numerous pregnant women substituting only medium chain fatty acids (coconut oil/coconut milk) or using only monounsaturated fats (such as olive oil) during pregnancy to control their own cholesterol, but long chain polyunsaturated fatty acids are essential nutrients for a healthy diet.

The different kinds consumed by the mother during gestation and lactation may influence pregnancy, fetal and also neonatal outcome, according to the abstract of the study, "Long chain fatty acids and dietary fats in fetal nutrition." There's a difference between long-chain saturated fats and long-chain polyunsaturated fats. Also see the article, "Long-chain Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids in Chronic Childhood Disorders."

One example of long-chain polyunstaturated fats is the DHA from purified fish oils that don't contain PCBs. According to the article, "Long-chain Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids in Chronic Childhood Disorders," Recent research indicates that providing supplements of specific fatty acids, namely docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and arachidonic acid (AA), to infants, pregnant women and individuals with certain metabolic disorders may offer preventive and therapeutic benefits, especially in relation to brain development.

In addition, supplementing both fatty acids together in prescribed amounts may augment their effects on neurotransmission and membrane maturation. Recently, a small group of experts has concluded that “infant formulas for term infants should contain at least 0.2% of total fatty acids as DHA and 0.35% as AA, while formulas for preterm infants should include at least 0.35% DHA and 0.4% AA.” All recent reviews and recommendations have underlined the lack of adverse effects from these supplementations. In addition, providing supplements of DHA to pregnant women was recently shown to be associated with improved early developmental outcome of the offspring.

What's the Possible Future of Fish Oil?

What's the future of fish oil in California in the form of supplements? Are people turning to calamari or krill oil instead when told to get at least 600 mg of DHA and a little less EPA for brain and artery health? How much toxins such as carcinogenic PCBs are in your fish oil? Sacramento, San Francisco, and other California consumers buy a lot of fish oil supplements in local health food stores, online, and in discount stores such as Sacramento's Walmart and Target stores.

More than a year has passed since the March 2010 PCB levels in fish oil (contamination) lawsuit, and yet news is hard to find online about which changes were made in various brands of fish oil. Is what's on the label the same as what's in the bottle, capsule or soft-gel?

Testing found that levels of PCBs in supplements in popular fish oil products varied from about 12 nanograms per recommended dose in one brand of fish oil to more than 850 nanograms in the worst performer - a factor of 70. Before you give your child a spoonful of fish oil, you should know that last year a lawsuit brought by environmentalists in California claimed that 10 popular brands of fish oil dietary supplements contained unsafe and illegal levels of the carcinogenic chemicals known as polychlorinated biphenyls, or PCBs. Download a copy of the lawsuit here.

Consumers buy the fish oil at stores such as Walmart, Target, GNC, and similar stores or online, for example at The two Twinlab. See, A.F.'s Twinlab among 8 companies sued over fish oil supplements, Solgar, Now Foods, Twinlab, Nature Made named in Lawsuit, and for the industry's side of the story, see Industry Responds to California Fish Oil Lawsuit | NBJ Blog. You can be sure the fish oil industries are fighting back.

Why didn't supplement manufacturers and distributors warn consumers that 10 of their fish oil supplements contain toxic chemicals that can cause cancer and birth defects? Naturally, industry responded. Who's doing the sueing? The plaintiffs are two citizen environmentalists and the Mateel Environmental Justice Foundation. Also see the sites, Environmental Justice Foundation EJF: Protecting People and Planet, FishOilSafety.com and Lawsuit: Disclose PCB Levels in Fish Oil - CBS News.

Last spring, 2010, Twinlab Corp, was accused in a lawsuit filed by Mateel Environmental Justice Foundation and two environmentalists of misleading consumers about the levels of polychlorinated biphenyls, or PCBs, in two of their fish oil supplements, Twinlab's Norwegian Cod Liver Oil and Emulsified Norwegian Cod Liver Oil. The use of the word 'Norwegian' somehow puts an idea in the brains of consumers that because the fish come from icy waters, it has to be free of PCBs and other toxins. But what's the reality and how do the various supplement manufacturers fight back or answer the law suit?

It's not the first lawsuit aimed at Twinlab. See, Shareholders Sue Twinlab Corporation for Stock Fraud, Says Berman. Only this time, the law suit focuses on fish oil. See, Industry Responds to California Fish Oil Lawsuit | NBJ Blog. There's two sides to every story. For consumers, shoppers of fish oil want the industry to agree that the customer is supposed to be right.

Even though these two Twinlab supplements claim they are "PCB and heavy metal free," the lawsuit reports that the fish oil supplements "allegedly contain PCBs above the 'safe harbor' limits set for human consumption under California's Proposition 65, which requires consumers to be warned about exposure to toxic chemicals," according to the San Francisco Superior Court suit.

In addition to Twinlab, the suit names several retailers and manufacturers of fish oil, shark oil, fish liver oil and shark liver oil supplements. They include: CVS Pharmacy Inc.; General Nutrition Corp.; Now Health Group Inc.; Omega Protein Inc.; Pharmavite LLC (which sells fish oils under the Nature Made brand); Rite Aid Corp.; and Solgar Inc.

You can check out the lawsuit which was filed in California Superior Court in San Francisco. The suit targeted eight supplement manufacturers or distributors - CVS Pharmacy, Rite Aid, General Nutrition Corp., Solgar, Twinlab, Now Health, Omega Protein and Pharmavite - for alleged violations of California's Proposition 65, which requires that consumers be warned about chemical exposures. Eventually, a total of 10 companies were added to the list. But the suit claims that all of the manufacturers are in violation of Proposition 65 for not disclosing any non-zero PCB levels in their products.

The plaintiffs and their attorneys claim that that labels saying "Screened for PCBs" or "Treated to Remove PCBs" are especially problematic, because those labels imply - falsely - that PCBs have been removed entirely. They also believe that the manufacturers already have extensive data on the amount of PCBs present in their product. Will the companies release their tests and data?

PCBs were officially listed as known carcinogens and known reproductive toxins in California back in 1990, making them subject to the California's warning requirement. On the other hand, if you look at the manufacturers, Only three years ago reports found no unsafe levels of dioxin, mercury or PCBs in many edible products - one from Consumer Reports and another from the well-regarded supplement testing publication ConsumerLab. So who do you believe? Check out the sites, PCBs in Fish Oil Supplements? - Dr. Weil

The California lawsuit was filed by environmentalists who claim that certain fish oil supplements sold in the state contain unsafe and illegal levels of PCBs (polychlorinated biphenyls). The manufacturing of these chemicals was banned in the United States in 1979, but they were widely used as plasticizers in paints, plastics, and rubber products and many other industrial applications.

If you're ingesting PCBs in fish oil or any other supplement, the PCBs are not going to break down. What you have stored in your body from the past and what's in the environment are still being released into the food chain and air, including Sacramento's polluted air. PCBs are known to have adverse health effects in humans and animals and are regarded as potential carcinogens. Check out the following sites regarding the law suit filed last spring.

According to the site, The brand name supplements named in the lawsuit include:

1. Nature Made Cod Liver Oil

2. Nature Made Odorless Fish Oil

3. TwinLab Norwegian Cod Liver Oil

4. TwinLab Emulsified Norwegian Cod Liver Oil

5. Now Foods Shark Liver Oil

6. Now Foods Double Strength Cod Liver Oil

7. Now Foods Salmon Oil

8. Solgar 100% Pure Norwegian Shark Liver Oil Complex

9. Solgar Norwegian Cod Liver Oil

10. GNC Liquid Norwegian Cod Liver Oil

Source: fishoilsafety.com