# Fish Oil capsules: new Quack medicine? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [November 17, 2008, 2:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fish-oil-capsules-new-quack-medicine/473119 "2008-11-17T14:10:25Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2008, 8:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fish-oil-capsules-new-quack-medicine/473119/21 "2008-11-18T08:41:06Z")
I take four Omega-3s and one 3-6-9, daily, for high cholesterol/triglycerides. My numbers are improving. ---
**Author:** ![Cheez\_Whia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/d26b3c/32.png) [@Cheez\_Whia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cheez_Whia)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2008, 1:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fish-oil-capsules-new-quack-medicine/473119/22 "2008-11-18T13:37:23Z")
**Furious\_Marmot** , as a partial answer to you, my doc told me to take a certain brand, one that she had done some checking on, to make sure that the pills were as free from contamination as possible. I also had to stop taking them for a few days prior to a minor surgical procedure, because of clotting issues very similar to the ones from taking blood thinners. ---
**Author:** ![nashiitashii](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/7c8e57/32.png) [@nashiitashii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nashiitashii)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2008, 1:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fish-oil-capsules-new-quack-medicine/473119/23 "2008-11-18T13:51:52Z")
> [@An\_Gadai](#): > > Did your mother not stuff cod liver oil down your gullet when you were a child? In the United States, it’s really not as common to have fish or give kids cod liver oil to supplement their diets as it is in Northern Europe. I only have memories of that stuff because I still have close family who live in the homeland and I spent enough summers over there to get familiar with the scent and taste of that stuff. I am, however, finding it strange to see so many fish oil bottles that mask the taste or plaster the word “Iceland” all over it and don’t really have much to do with it. I’d rather take it in the form of Lýsi than the doctored-up stuff they sell here. Currently, I take fish oil capsules because I can’t really afford to eat fatty fish on a regular basis, and I’m not a big fan of canned tuna. Once I run out of the bottle of capsules, I may switch over to plain cod liver oil, but I’m not entirely sure. I’ll probably see what the prices are for bottles of the cod liver oil my grandfather used to use when I was little when I go to Iceland and see whether it’s more cost effective to get it directly from a good source. It may not taste good, but it’s a good solution to the “can’t afford decent fatty fish on a regular basis” issue. ---
**Author:** ![ralph124c](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/8797f3/32.png) [@ralph124c](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ralph124c)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2008, 2:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fish-oil-capsules-new-quack-medicine/473119/24 "2008-11-18T14:17:09Z")
Well, as i say, cod liver oil is cheap. If you buy it in capsule form, it is expensive-somebody is getting very rich. By the way, is fresh fish a good source of vitamin C? Nobody mentions fishermen getting scurvey 9in the old days). ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2008, 2:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fish-oil-capsules-new-quack-medicine/473119/25 "2008-11-18T14:23:02Z")
To stop the fish burps try putting them in the freezer. It works for me. ---
**Author:** ![WotNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e19b73/32.png) [@WotNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WotNot)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2008, 4:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fish-oil-capsules-new-quack-medicine/473119/26 "2008-11-18T16:18:48Z")
> [@ralph124c](#): > > By the way, is fresh fish a good source of vitamin C? Nobody mentions fishermen getting scurvey 9in the old days). It doesn’t look like it from a quick scan, but then fishermen used not to stay at sea for long, anyway. They had to get their catch to market before it spoiled. ---
**Author:** ![New\_Beginning](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@New\_Beginning](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/New_Beginning)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2008, 8:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fish-oil-capsules-new-quack-medicine/473119/27 "2008-11-18T20:06:16Z")
Being allergic to fish, I have been taking flax seed oil. Does anybody know if there are reasons to believe it to be less effective than fish oil? ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2008, 8:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fish-oil-capsules-new-quack-medicine/473119/28 "2008-11-18T20:47:14Z")
> [@New\_Beginning](#): > > Being allergic to fish, I have been taking flax seed oil. Does anybody know if there are reasons to believe it to be less effective than fish oil? Debate back and forth, but it seems that Flax is a Good source. Perhaps even safer. ---
**Author:** ![ralph124c](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/8797f3/32.png) [@ralph124c](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ralph124c)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2008, 9:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fish-oil-capsules-new-quack-medicine/473119/29 "2008-11-18T21:35:02Z")
> [@Quasimodem](#): > > Along with coconut oil, it’s part of my daily regimen to battle Early Onset Alzheimer’s. It’s said that the Omega-3’s prevent the plaque that causes AD > > To be honest, at this point, I’m doing a **lot** of reading and if there’s **any** kind of documentation that something works, I’ll try it. > > [http://tampabay.com/news/aging/article879333.ece](http://tampabay.com/news/aging/article879333.ece) > > Q Heart disease is common in areas of india, where coconut oil is used for cooking. Beware ---
**Author:** ![Quasimodem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/e274bd/32.png) [@Quasimodem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quasimodem)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2008, 11:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fish-oil-capsules-new-quack-medicine/473119/30 "2008-11-18T23:13:38Z")
> [@ralph124c](#): > > Heart disease is common in areas of india, where coconut oil is used for cooking. Beware **Ralph** , The oil I take has 13.5 grams of saturated fat. It’s 100% organic, and I take 2 tbsp. a day. I will be keeping an eye on my cholesterol levels, so thanks for the warning. From what I have read however, coconut oil isn’t _supposed_ to affect cholesterol. Guess we’ll find out, huh? 🙂 Thanks again! Q ---
**Author:** ![racer72](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/racer72/32/3075_2.png) [@racer72](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/racer72)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2008, 1:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fish-oil-capsules-new-quack-medicine/473119/31 "2008-11-19T01:33:07Z")
> [@ralph124c](#): > > These things are pretty pricey too..thus explaining the adds. So what is the truth? i was in a fih market yesterday, and you can buy a 16 oz. bottle of cod liver oil for $3.65-versus a bottle of 50 pils (perhaps 2 oz.0 for $24.00! I bought a 4½ month supply at Sam’s Club for less than $9. I’ve been taking them for about a month, my blood pressure and cholesterol are lower, my mood has improved and I sleep better at night. They still give me pretty bad gas at times though. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fish-oil-capsules-new-quack-medicine/473119.md?page=1)