Bio-Availability
Nature knows best
Bio-availability is influenced by the molecular shape of fatty acids, sugars, proteins, and other nutrients that are easily absorbed by the body. When it comes to fish oil, the benefits associated with it can only start taking effect once the body has absorbed the nutrients contained within it. The more natural the molecular structure the better.
So, when assessing how ‘natural’ fish oil is, it is important to know about the different forms currently available on the market:
- Natural fish oil comes in a triglyceride form. This is the oil that you get when you ‘squeeze’ the fish and extract the natural oil from it. The drawback from this particular form of fish oil is that it usually has low omega-3 content because it’s not concentrated and generally has high levels of contaminants such as heavy metals, PCBs, dioxins etc.
- Ethyl ester oil occurs when you take natural triglyceride oil and concentrate it whilst molecularly distilling the oil to eliminate purities. The concentration process cannot take place until the natural triglycerides are converted to an ester form. The ester form is still in a semi-natural state because it is the result of a process that naturally occurs in the body to allow for bio-availability (readily absorbed). It’s not uncommon to double or even triple the omega-3 content using this concentration process.
- Synthetic triglyceride oil is another form of fish oil that is very common and marketed as ‘natural’ when in fact it isn’t. It is a triglyceride, but not a natural one. It is produced after concentration. As mentioned above, the natural triglycerides are converted to ethyl esters for concentration. This is perfectly fine HOWEVER; some companies then re-convert the esters back into triglycerides – a synthetic form which occurs as a result of this re-conversion process. The original position of the triglyceride’s carbon bonds change and the molecule’s overall structure is altered. Part of it becomes foreign to what the body is used to - negatively impacting the bio-availability of the fish oil.
Getting the best of both ‘natural’ worlds
Our Omega 3 / DHA Fish Oil is a 50/50 blend of hoki oil in its natural triglyceride form and a concentrated molecularly distilled tuna oil in an ethyl ester form. Both are exceptionally pure and easily absorbed by the body due to their omega-3s maintaining a natural molecular shape. No synthetic triglycerides are found in our oil as we believe that our products should be as natural as nature itself.
