# Is fish oil really good for you?
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-fish-oil-really-good-for-you/351904
**Category:** Factual Questions
**Created:** [April 9, 2006, 12:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-fish-oil-really-good-for-you/351904 "2006-04-09T00:47:15Z")
**Posts on this page:** 7
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@miss-shari](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/miss-shari)
#### Post date: [April 9, 2006, 12:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-fish-oil-really-good-for-you/351904/1 "2006-04-09T00:47:15Z")
Back in the day, people used to take their spoonful of codliver oil every day. My friend Susan thinks this was probably a good, healthy habit that we have now gotten rid of, generally speaking. Moreover, there’s a lot of talk I hear (as a mother of two little boys) about the benefits of fish oil. Maybe it’s good as preventative measure for: heart ailments; asthma; autism. What’s the scoop? Does anyone know if there’s any validity to this? They even sell cherry-flavored fish oil for children at our local fancy health-food store. If there is any validity to it, how much is an adult supposed to take on a daily basis? How about kids? Shari
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### Author:  [@OpalCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OpalCat)
#### Post date: [April 9, 2006, 12:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-fish-oil-really-good-for-you/351904/2 "2006-04-09T00:49:11Z")
You can get the same benefit from flax seeds, btw.
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### Author:  [@Sage\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sage_Rat)
#### Post date: [April 9, 2006, 12:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-fish-oil-really-good-for-you/351904/3 "2006-04-09T00:49:41Z")
> [@miss-shari](#):
>
> cherry-flavored fish oil
Mmmmm…
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### Author:  [@Baraqiyal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baraqiyal)
#### Post date: [April 9, 2006, 12:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-fish-oil-really-good-for-you/351904/4 "2006-04-09T00:52:30Z")
[One](http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/health/dietfitness.html?in_article_id=380901&in_page_id=1798) recent meta-study found little benefit, but that it should “not be ruled out”. I guess the jury is still out.
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### Author:  [@Hunter\_Hawk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hunter_Hawk)
#### Post date: [April 9, 2006, 1:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-fish-oil-really-good-for-you/351904/5 "2006-04-09T01:18:00Z")
My dietician said that the standard recommendation (YMMV, see your doctor, etc.) is 2000-4000 mg of combined EPA & DHA daily for adults. She also recommended fish oil rather than flax oil, since apparently your body needs to convert the ALA in flax oil to a more usable form.
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### Author:  [@OpalCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OpalCat)
#### Post date: [April 9, 2006, 1:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-fish-oil-really-good-for-you/351904/6 "2006-04-09T01:24:31Z")
I brought it up because it’s a good vegetarian option for those like me who don’t eat fish. 🙂
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### Author:  [@ultrafilter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ultrafilter)
#### Post date: [April 9, 2006, 3:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-fish-oil-really-good-for-you/351904/7 "2006-04-09T03:07:18Z")
Fish oil is one of the few supplements out there with [scientific support](http://www.supplementwatch.com/suplib/supplement.asp?DocId=1119) for most of the claims about it. It’s definitely worth looking into.
The omega-3 composition of flax is similar but not exactly the same as fish oil. If you can’t/won’t eat fish for any reason, flax is a good source as long as you grind the seeds–like all other seeds, they really aren’t digested all that well.