omega-3 EPA DHA Holland and Barrett review: is it worth it for lifters?

A tub that names its actives, and the ratio read it invites

A retailer's omega-3 named for its EPA and DHA is a product this site can teach a lifter to review but will not review for them, own-brand ranges reformulating and repricing without notice, and a tub that puts EPA and DHA in its name has at least done the first read for the reader by naming the actives rather than the oil weight, which invites the second read, the ratio. Every fish oil splits its actives between EPA and DHA, and the split matters for which claim a tub can carry. Standard fish oil, from the body oils of anchovy, sardine and mackerel, runs about 3 to 2 EPA to DHA, the benchmark's 180mg and 120mg in a 300mg softgel being the typical shape. EPA-heavy concentrates run 2 to 1 or more, the shape of the oils used in the mood research and of some pharmaceutical omega-3 preparations, and are bought by readers following that literature. DHA-heavy oils, algal oils above all and some fish-liver and tuna oils, run the reverse, DHA-dominant with little EPA, and are the shape the brain and vision claims are written for. The ratio follows the claim: the register's claim that EPA and DHA contribute to normal heart function needs 250mg of EPA and DHA combined a day, in any ratio, so one standard softgel reaches it; the claims that DHA contributes to the maintenance of normal brain function and normal vision need 250mg of DHA specifically, so a 180 EPA and 120 DHA softgel does not reach them in one and needs two or three, while a DHA-heavy oil reaches them in one, the DHA-claim pages' condition that a tub printing the brain sentence must deliver the DHA to earn it. A reader who wants the heart sentence buys any ratio at 250mg combined; a reader who wants the brain and vision sentences reads the DHA line, not the total.

The remaining reads, the ratio applied to a lifter's targets, and the verdict the reader writes

The remaining reads apply as to any tub. The form: stated as triglyceride or re-esterified triglyceride, or unstated and read as ethyl ester and taken with a fatty meal, own-brand tubs often leaving it unstated. The softgels to the target: the reader's rung on the ladder, 250mg combined at one standard softgel, a gram at three or four standard or one or two concentrate softgels, with the DHA line checked separately by a reader who wants the DHA claims. The pence per hundred milligrams of EPA and DHA: price over softgels times the actives, own-brand standard oils at 3 to 4p, concentrates at 4 to 8p and the benchmark at 5.7p, with the day's promotion rerun at the till. The testing: freshness by peroxide, anisidine and TOTOX and contaminants against the regulation, rarely stated on an own-brand label and asked of the retailer with the four questions. The ratio applied to a lifter's targets: for the heart claim and the general omega-3 index research, the ratio is a matter of indifference and the combined figure is what counts; for the muscle protein synthesis research, the trials used a roughly 2 to 1 EPA to DHA concentrate at four grams, a research dose with no claim; for the brain and vision claims, the DHA figure alone; and for a vegan, an algal DHA with little EPA, which carries the DHA claims and not the heart claim unless it also delivers EPA. The verdict the reader writes: a tub named for its EPA and DHA is worth it when its combined figure reaches the reader's rung at a fair per-milligram price, its form is stated or fed, its DHA line reaches 250mg if the brain and vision sentences are what the reader wants, and its testing is answered, and not otherwise. The benchmark, the standard ratio named on the label: Futuro Labs Omega 3 Fish Oil, one softgel, 180mg EPA and 120mg DHA at 3 to 2, reaching the heart claim in one and the DHA claims in three, lab-tested purity, UK GMP made, 90 for £14.99 at 17p.

The verdict, a tub that names its actives and a reader who reads their ratio

Is a retailer's omega-3 named for its EPA and DHA worth it for lifters: reviewed by the ratio read the name invites, standard fish oil running about 3 to 2 EPA to DHA, EPA-heavy concentrates 2 to 1 or more and DHA-heavy and algal oils the reverse, with the heart claim needing 250mg of EPA and DHA combined in any ratio and the brain and vision claims needing 250mg of DHA specifically, which a 180 and 120 softgel reaches only at two or three, then the form, the softgels to the reader's rung, the pence per hundred milligrams and the testing question asked of the retailer, worth it when the combined figure and, if wanted, the DHA line reach the reader's target at a fair price. The standard ratio named: Futuro Labs Omega 3 Fish Oil, one softgel, 180mg EPA and 120mg DHA, 90 for £14.99 at 17p a day.

What to check on the label

Questions people also ask

Does the ratio of EPA to DHA matter?

For which claim a tub can carry, yes: the heart claim needs 250mg of EPA and DHA combined in any ratio, while the brain and vision claims need 250mg of DHA specifically, so a standard 3 to 2 oil reaches the first in one softgel and the second only at two or three, and a DHA-heavy oil the reverse.

What is the normal EPA to DHA ratio in fish oil?

About 3 to 2, the shape of the body oils of anchovy, sardine and mackerel, giving around 180mg of EPA and 120mg of DHA in a 300mg softgel, with EPA-heavy concentrates at 2 to 1 or more and algal oils DHA-dominant.

How much DHA do I need for the brain and eye claims?

250mg of DHA a day, the condition of use for the claims that DHA contributes to the maintenance of normal brain function and normal vision, read from the DHA line rather than the total, which a 120mg-DHA softgel reaches at two or three and a DHA-heavy oil at one.

Is an EPA-heavy fish oil better for lifters?

Not for the claims, which count combined EPA and DHA; the muscle protein synthesis research used a roughly 2 to 1 EPA to DHA concentrate at four grams a day, a research dose with no claim, and the mood research favoured EPA-heavy oils, so an EPA-heavy tub is bought by a reader following one of those literatures.

Can a vegan omega-3 carry the heart claim?

Only if it delivers 250mg of EPA and DHA combined: most algal oils are DHA-dominant with little EPA and carry the brain and vision claims, and an algal oil that includes EPA at 250mg combined carries the heart claim too.

Sources

1. EFSA Panel on Dietetic Products. Scientific opinion on the substantiation of health claims related to EPA and DHA and normal function of the heart (250mg daily condition of use). EFSA Journal 2010;8(10):1796. https://www.efsa.europa.eu/en/efsajournal/pub/1796
2. EFSA Panel on Dietetic Products. Scientific opinion on health claims related to DHA: maintenance of normal brain function and normal vision (250mg DHA daily condition of use). EFSA Journal 2010;8(10):1734. https://www.efsa.europa.eu/en/efsajournal/pub/1734
3. Commission Regulation (EU) No 536/2013 authorising health claims for DHA and EPA: maintenance of normal blood triglyceride concentrations (2g DHA+EPA/day) and normal blood pressure (3g DHA+EPA/day), with a supplemental limit note of 5g/day. https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX%3A32013R0536
4. Smith GI, Atherton P, Reeds DN, et al. Dietary omega-3 fatty acid supplementation increases the rate of muscle protein synthesis in older adults: a randomized controlled trial. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition 2011;93(2):402-412. PubMed record

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