Fish/Krill oil doing more harm than good?

Hi everyone,

Fish oil has been claimed to decrease TNF-alpha production by peripheral blood mononuclear cells (eg., lymphocytes, monocytes, macrophages). But according to this study I just read, fish oil supplementation might decrease or increase the production of TNF-alpha by PBMCs depending on how much they produced prior to supplementation. This is determined by your genes: for some people, TNF-alpha production is low, and for others it is high. For those individuals whose TNF-alpha production is low, supplementation with fish oil will actually increase the synthesis and release of TNF-alpha by PBMCs. In fact, for those people who are in the lowest quartile, the production will increase by 160%!

So you might actually be fanning the flames higher with fish oil supplementation.

Here's the link to the study:
http://www.ajcn.org/content/76/2/454.abstract

Some of the more technical content about the genes coding for TNF-alpha production was beyond me. Maybe someone with more background in the topic can read through the study and give everyone some feedback.

In particular, I'd like to know if there's an easy way to find out how much TNF-alpha my white blood cells are producing due to genetic encoding, independent of fish oil supplementation.

-Mikhail

mphatesmpb - Would ditch fish oil in favor of krill oil.

I use krill oil. But it seems likely that the results of the study would apply to krill oil also? The primary difference between krill oil and fish oil is that krill oil is a more bioefficient carrier of omega-3s to the various tissues of the body.

mphatesmpb - The majority of fish oil is problematic because it is extremely vulnerable to oxidation. Just having a supply of fish oil, even in capsule form sitting for a few months will oxidize.

Krill oil on the other hand when it contains an abundance of astaxanthin will not only protect against oxidation, it will also protect the body's tissues against oxidative stress.

I'm aware of the advantages of krill oil over fish oil. I am concerned with what you make of my first post in this thread.

Is it possible that, from a hair loss perspective, fish/krill oil supplementation might actually be doing harm than good? As explained in the study, PBMCs in some people are genetically predisposed to producing less TNF-alpha. In these individuals, supplementation with fish oil (and probably krill oil, too) will upregulate TNF-alpha production.

It's well-established that TNF-alpha mediates the effect of DHT on hair follicles...

Having too little tnf is not a good thing either.

mphatesmpb - I found improvement with hair after first initially introducing fish and/or cod liver oil. It's really about balance. Various proteins in the body are not always bad. I do believe we are much better off using either a high quality cod liver oil or Krill oil (instead of fish oil).

Hey fatty,

From someone I really trust:

When it comes to fish oil, more is not better
http://thehealthyskeptic.org/when-it-comes-to-fish-oil-more-is-not-better?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=when-it-comes-to-fish-oil-more-is-not-better

Article summary

* The benefits of fish oil supplementation have been grossly overstated
* Most of the studies showing fish oil benefits are short-term, lasting less than one year
* The only fish oil study lasting more than four years showed an increase in heart disease and sudden death
* Fish oil is highly unstable and vulnerable to oxidative damage
* There’s no evidence that healthy people benefit from fish oil supplementation
* Taking several grams of fish oil per day may be hazardous to your health

A lot of saturated fat, and little amounts of other types of fats seem the healthiest option (look at the kitavans' diet). Some research and expert's opinions support this.

Man this is a lifestyle changer here! LF, can you cite these claims? I'm not questioning your credibility in any way, I just would like to read up on the studies...

What about just eating a lot of salmon? i wouold think that would be more stable or at least not sitting long enough to spoil

Yanks - LittleFighter is right on the money as usual.

The problem is that fish oil is highly subject to oxidation. This is where there is a clear difference between krill and fish oil.

Also, eating the whole fish, assuming it is fresh and not farmed will provide a more complete fatty acid profile.

It does not take very long for fish oil, just sitting on the shelf to oxidize (turn rancid).

does carlsons cod liver/fish oil go rancid fast,or by the time you get it if it's been refrigerated once it arrives at the store and is it wild I assume? I assume if you get some fish oil and it's not rancid you could add astaxanthin and it would improve the stability of it correct?

I too have used fish oil in the past (about five years ago) with mixed results. Initially quite good, but then, a fair amount of shedding that continued until I stopped taking this supplement. Interesting to read about the possible reasons for this as posted above.

Balthier--

Adding astaxanthin probably will do you no good, you'd have to be a chemist to get it right. And, that'd also be assuming that it wasn't spoiled already; good chance it will be. Krill is the way to go--naturally has astaxanthin in it, not to mention a good deal of positive studies behind it.

I used Fish Oil for years and about 2 years ago my Naturopathic Doctor recommended Krill Doctor Professional. I love using Krill Doctor since I can not tolerate the fishy burps and many brands do not have enough nutrients which I get from Krill Doctor. So far I am happy with the results.
For more details go here:-krilldoctor.com

LittleFighter wrote:A lot of saturated fat, and little amounts of other types of fats seem the healthiest option (look at the kitavans' diet). Some research and expert's opinions support this.

Yes on the paper indeed, since a cell is actually almost all made with saturated fat and only very few others. However i get vomiting effect from coconut oil and Im not sure its safe to take daily in the dosage dany advice to. There is a study showing fat accumulation in liver in mice. Sometimes i get weak using coconot oil wich is not the case with krill oil. Actually krill oil has scientific data showing its benefit on bad and good cholesterol. I think CS is right about the oxidativ theory, even vitamin E cant protect the peroxidation as much as astaxanthin can in an esterifed form

nidhogge wrote:Adding astaxanthin probably will do you no good, you'd have to be a chemist to get it right. And, that'd also be assuming that it wasn't spoiled already; good chance it will be. Krill is the way to go--naturally has astaxanthin in it, not to mention a good deal of positive studies behind it.

what do you mean nidhogge ? There is some supplement selling it in a sofgel form mixed with olive oil, im sure this is stable and pure (easy for any to control)