Taking an omega three fish oil supplement can provide significant health benefits. Studies demonstrating the wide ranging benefits of omega three now date right back to the 1970’s.
Thankfully though, the risks of any omega three fish oil side effects at all are actually extremely low.
Some people report a fishy taste after taking a capsule, or later on in the day experience ‘fishy burping’.
Whilst these are in no way serious problems, they shouldn’t actually be occurring at all.
A good quality fish oil supplement should not give you these side effects. The freshness of the oils used is key to minimising, or even removing this problem completely.
Fish oils are very sensitive to heat, light and oxygen. So they will go rancid quickly if not properly handled. Always choose a manufacturer who takes extreme care over freshness (such as this one).
Some people may experience mild diarrhoea or abdominal discomfort for a short time, although this will tend to subside.
Nose bleeds and easier bruising has been reported, although this was only in subjects taking extremely high doses, as high as 12 grams per day.
The ‘blood thinning’ benefit of fish oils should of course be considered with any other blood thinning medication. So as always, discuss with your doctor before starting a supplement, and any concerns you may have later.
Finally, be careful of the purity of any fish oil supplement you buy. The main reason health advisories recommend we limit our intake of fish is due to the levels of pollution in our oceans.
The very fish we could be eating to significantly benefit our health are contaminated with toxic metals such as mercury, which is extremely toxic to the human body. And those toxins will be present in oil extracted from the fish.
Yes, there are guidelines for what is a ‘safe level’ of mercury contamination, which is why we are recommended NOT to eat fish more than twice a week. But when it comes it a fish oil supplement there is no need to tolerate any contamination. Fish oil can be molecularly distilled to remove the toxic metals without reducing the benefits – so make sure you only buy a supplement that has been distilled.
The company I use produce pharmaceutical grade fish oils supplements, which have been molecularly distilled. They pay the utmost attention to keeping the product fresh, and even use cleaner ocean more ethically sourced fish to start with.
When it comes to fish oils it is important to know as much as you can about how the product is made, as any possible side effects can be greatly reduced as a result.
