Fish Oil - amount?

  • I am taking my own fish oil as required from my MF center (didn't buy theirs)...
    Can't find in my literature how many mg per day total I should take?

    Anyone know?

    Thanks!

    pf
  • I'm not sure what the literature says - I have heard that taking 400mg to 4000mg is ideal. Make sure it is Active EPA/DHA (add the two amounts from the nutrition label). And, verify how many capsules equal one serving... it is often 2 - but I have seen bottles where only 1 capsule is the serving.

    I don't take the liquid - so I have no advice there.

    Personally, I take 2000 mg and I notice a difference in my mood if I miss a dose. I take it at night with a tums to avoid fish burps. I work with a Naturopath Dr and know I take more than the average person.

    Hope that provides a little help
  • It depends on what you're using it for: Generic cardiac health, lowering your triglyceride levels, serotonin boosting (depression, anxiety, mood elevation, pain relief), or inflammation (and other uses - it may for example reduce the nausea of cancer treatment - the jury's still out on that one).

    My doctor says he usually recommends 1,000 to 2,000 mg for general, cardiac health. The bottle directions on the brand I buy recommend 3,000 mg. One 1,000 mg capsule at each meal (I do not doubt that it's a safe dose, but they're also trying to get you to use up their product faster so you buy more, so I don't know that it's the best dose).

    Even higher doses can be prescribed for triglyceride-lowering effects and to reduce NSAID (drugs to treat inflammation without steroids like ibuprofen, naproxen, relafen, Celebrex) use in patients with rheumatoid arthritis and other inflammatory conditions.

    I personally take about 4,000 mg or more, divided in 2 or 3 doses, but it's because I'm using it under my doctor's supervision to replace the prescription relafen I was on before (we discovered that I can't take NSAIDs, because they were causing me severe asthma and other respiratory problems).


    Unless you have any health issues that would justify a larger dose 1,000 mg is probably the place to start (and before taking more than 3,000 mg talk to your doctor).
  • I just call the company the other day and ask how much and they said 2 a day. I was just taking 1 so I upped mine.