There are no official guidelines regarding the amount of fish oil you should take for weight loss. Recommendations are based on past clinical research. Fish oil contains omega-3 fatty acids, forms of polyunsaturated fat. Polyunsaturated fats are good for you. In addition to possible weight loss benefits, they protect you from chronic disease and improve the health of your heart. Always check with your physician prior to taking fish oil or other types of supplements.
DHA and EPA
Fish oil contains two types of omega-3 fatty acids, eicosapentaenoic acid, or EPA and docosahexaenoic acid, or DHA. Different types of supplements use various ratios of DHA and EPA. MedlinePlus notes that clinical evidence supports for weight loss a daily dosage of 6 g of NuMega fish oil, a high DHA blend.
Research
Dr. Alison Hill wrote in the May 2007 issue of "The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition" that fish oil reduces body fat levels even without diet and exercise. For 12 weeks, participants took a daily dosage of 6 g of NuMega fish oil, an Australian blend of 260 mg of DHA and 60 mg of EPA. A July 2010 article published in "Preventing Chronic Disease" described the results of a clinical trial in which overweight or obese participants were given 1,250 mg to 1,500 mg per day, along with a calorie-restricted, high-fiber diet. Over a period of eight weeks, men lost an average of 13.1 lbs. and women lost 10.5 lbs.
Dietary Consumption
In the September 2010 issue of the "European Journal of Clinical Nutrition," Dr. Alfons Ramel studied how fish oil affected the weight-loss efforts of 324 men and women ages 20 to 40. In this eight-week study, the subjects followed a strict calorie-restricted diet, each week consuming three 150 g servings of salmon or cod. The groups that incorporated fish into their diet lost more weight than the control group, which ate no fish. With the exception of fish, the diets were identical for all of the groups.
Considerations
Studies examining the effectiveness of fish oil have yielded mixed results. Dr. Laura Defina, along with other researchers from the Cooper Institute in Texas, studied whether fish oil improved the weight loss of overweight men and women. Every week for 24 weeks, study participants performed 150 minutes of aerobic activity and 20 to 30 minutes of weight training exercise. Each day the group was given a total of 3 g of fish oil. While the fish oil group did lose weight, they didn't lose more than the control group who didn't take the fish oil supplements but did perform the exercises.
Safety Concerns
Consistently high levels of fish oil more than 3 g per day may increase your chances of bleeding and reduce the clotting function of your blood. Fish oil may interact with aspirin and blood pressure medication, such as hydrochlorothiazide, losartan or diltiazem. Certain anticoagulant medication may also interact with fish oil, including orlistat, heparin, clopidogrel, dipyridamole, ticlopidine, dalteparin and enoxaparin.
References
- MedlinePlus: Fish Oil
- "The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition"; Combining Fish-oil With Regular Aerobic Exercise"; Alison M. Hill, Ph.D., et al.; May 2007
- "Preventing Chronic Disease"; Effect of a Multifaceted, Church-Based Wellness Program; Priscilla Ivester, et al.; July 2010
- "European Journal of Clinical Nutrition"; Effect of Weight Loss and Seafood Consumption; Alfons Ramel; Ph.D., et al.; September 2010
- "The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition"; Effects of Omega-3 Supplementation in Combination With Diet and Exercise; Laura DeFina, M.D.; February 2011
- Nu-Mega
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