#1.   Where does the oil come from?

Because it is a very specialized process, most supplement companies do not make omega-3 oils themselves. Instead they purchase it from someone who specializes in the area. The quality from these manufacturers can vary widely, so you need to know where the oil in the supplement you choose comes from.

Part of Ohana Health’s mandate is to identify the finest sources of raw ingredients and processing facilities for its products – no matter where in the world they are located.  For our marine oil product Omega-3 For Life, we utilize omega-3 oil produced by one of the world’s oldest and most respected manufacturers.

Located in Norway, where the tradition of the sea is very strong, they began refining marine oils in 1838 and introduced their first pure omega-3 product in 1982. Today they are recognized as a world leader in omega-3 R&D, technology, and manufacturing processes. With more than 160 years of unrivalled expertise and authority in this highly complex field, their unique depth of experience has resulted in an outstanding omega-3 product.

The Omega-3 For Life manufacturing site is one of the few certified by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the production of pharmaceutical-grade omega-3 concentrates. More than 100 controlled clinical studies have been conducted worldwide utilizing these concentrates – making them the most studied, best documented omega-3 oils in the world. 

#2.   What is the level of purity?

Purity is the most important factor to consider when taking a fish oil supplement.

The raw material for Omega-3 For Life comes from fisheries of sardine, anchovy, and mackerel off the west coast of South America, where the nutrient-rich waters of the Antarctic region run northward in the Humboldt Current.  These species of fatty fish provide the purest omega-3 oils because they feed directly on plankton – at the lower levels of the food chain – and are known to contain significantly less contaminates (such as mercury) in their tissues than fish such as tuna, cod or salmon. Oil from these fisheries is high in omega-3 fatty acids, and very low in industrial pollutants.

Omega-3 For Life marine oil then undergoes purification utilizing a unique new technology that effectively eliminates PCBs, dioxins, heavy metals and other man-made pollutants.  An international patent application for this technology was published in 2005. 

This proprietary purification technology is different from other available technologies, and results in a significantly purer oil.  An additional short-path distillation step has been added prior to the classical process for producing concentrated oils.  This step efficiently removes all pesticides, PCBs, dioxins, bromintated flame retardants and other organic pollutants present in the oil.  As a result, the oil is already highly purified before entering the traditional molecular distillation / urea precipitation process.

At this stage the processes of molecular distillation 

and urea precipitation are applied. Molecular distillation

separates the long-chain fatty acids from the short-chain

ones, while urea precipitation separates the

polyunsaturated fatty acids from the saturated and the

monounsaturated ones.

The resulting marine oil far exceeds all established

purity standards, including those of the FDA and the new

Council of Responsible Nutrition’s voluntary fish oil

monograph – which is now considered the industry

standard.  In fact, Omega-3 For Life is between 10 and

100 times more pure, as the following chart shows.

Limits

#3.   How much omega-3 do I get in each gelcap?

It is important to understand that the amount of omega-3 in your supplement gelcap is not equal to the total milligram size on the label.  The total milligram size of the capsule refers to the total amount of fish oil in the capsule.  Depending on the product, the part of the fish oil that is omega-3 can be as little as 30% of that total.

Omega-3 For Life is highly concentrated and

provides you with the greatest possible omega-3

levels in each gelcap:

• 71% total omega-3s

• 60% of the key omega-3s EPA and DHA

  (composed of 35% EPA and 25% DHA)

• 568 mg of total omega-3s in each gelcap

This concentration offers a high degree of

therapeutic value. You only need to take 2-3

gelcaps a day to reach the optimum dosage

recommended for a wide range of health benefits.

(Health Canada recommends 1,100 to 1,500 mg

omega-3 per day, while other organizations

recommend up to 3,000 mg per day).

In addition, for the many people that find it difficult to swallow excessively large capsules, Omega-3 For Life comes in an easy to swallow 800 mg gelcap.

#4.   How does it taste?

Many people have been put off from taking fish oil supplement products due to the unpleasant taste or the awful fishy regurgitation that can occur afterwards.

Due to its unique purification process, Omega-3 For Life puts an end to this problem. It is odorless, tasteless, and virtually eliminates fishy regurgitation.