Once again we return to the bodybuilding- and fitness website of T-Nation and the latest advertisement-article on fish oil by their CCO Chris Shugart. They really have been pushing out a lot of these kinds of articles lately, trying to justify their line of supplements.
As I’ve been in the supplement business myself, for about 15 years, and developed a lot of them, I can relate to the ‘business side’ of it. However, I woke up from the inverted pseudo-science, I grew as a person, and realized just how useless and toxic they can be.
While I have written articles on fish oil and omega-3 supplements several times in the past, let’s see what Chris Shugart has for us this time, and I’ll break it down to what really matters in the real world, the world outside of bro-science, medical and nutrition pseudo-science, and in a world not deceived by the Food Industry and Big Pharma.
“Smart people take fish oil. Really smart people know the exact kind to buy and how much to take. Here’s your guide.”
That’s one big statement there Chris. And sorry mate, you’re dead wrong. Actually, smart people follow our natural species-appropriate, species-specific carnivorous diet and thus get all the nutrients he or she needs on a daily basis. And guess what? If you do that, there’s pretty much no need for any supplements ever, no matter if they actually would work as they claim.
“I bought my first supplements at age 16: some chalky protein powder and a “kit” of assorted mystery tablets. I’m not sure what that kit contained, but the guy on the package had big muscles. Research complete!”
That’s a cute anecdote. Reminds me of my young years as well. I bought my first Skip Olympic Protein Powder in 1988 when I was 14 years old. And it indeed tasted like chalk, even when mixed with raw milk directly from our neighbors’ farm. However, I started studying the pseudo-science of nutrition around 1986/1987 and was taught to embrace toxic carbohydrates, moderate amounts of protein and to be scared of the extremely important and essential animal fats. Luckily I embraced the ketogenic diet about 10 years later, but a lot of people are still trapped in this nutrition nonsense.
“Thankfully, I later educated myself about supplements. I became a total ingredient geek. I’ve been a supplement consumer ever since and an employee of a supplement company for over 25 years.”
I’ve been there too. Trapped in pseudo-science, thinking backwards about most things, just as I was taught. While I did a lot of things differently than most other coaches, such as focusing on animal-based foods and a ketogenic approach, I was still trapped in inverted science of supplements and imaginary benefits of some plants for most of my career. So, I can relate to a degree. However, with all the easily accessible information that is out there today on the internet and with a little knowledge of biology and biochemistry, you can easily find the truth and validate every single thing that I’ve ever written on this website, like many of my followers and readers actually have done. So, Chris, it’s time that you step up your game and wake up.
The Geek’s Guide
Step 1: Purity
“First, I want a clean fish oil supplement. This was a problem in the past. When fish oil first hit the market, many were rancid and all stank to high heaven. The refining process sucked. Some cheapo products still have these issues.
High-quality fish oil supps use molecular distillation. They’re rigorously tested for PCBs, dioxins, mercury, and other heavy metal contaminants. They’re also self-emulsifying. This removes all or most of the aftertaste and “fish burps.“
Yes, rancid oil is totally worthless and also extremely toxic, as it is very damaging to your body. However, it’s still a problem with most fish oil and omega-3 supplements, although it’s cleverly hidden among the more expensive brands. Even though you can use “molecular distillation” and add what you think are “antioxidants,” you simply introduce new problems instead. Nonetheless, this “molecular distillation” involves the use of vacuum and heat to separate the components of a mixture. The oil is heated just below its boiling point and the resulting vapor is carried into a distillation column. The vapor is then cooled and condensed, and the resulting liquid is collected as a separate fraction which is collected and purified to produce the desired oil. And guess what, heat changes the structure of oil. It’s actually one of the factors that make oil go rancid in the first place. If you think this process does not affect the components of the oil, you are very naive. It’s actually most likely rancid after this process.
And as for the self-emulsifying process, this is the process of combining two or more liquids that don’t normally mix. The self-emulsifying process of fish oil typically involves combining the oil with either lecithin, glycerin, or sorbitol. Then they use surfactants, substances that reduce the surface tension between the oil and the other liquid, making it easier for them to mix. Examples of surfactants include soap and different detergents. Also, as part of this process, they can add flavorings and sweeteners to improve the taste, aroma, and odor of the fish oil, deceiving the customer to believe that it’s perfect quality and not at all rancid (which it likely is after the molecular distillation.)
I wonder why you left out these important facts about the processes you bragged so much about, Chris?
Step 2: DHA Content
“I want a fish oil with a lot more DHA than EPA. The latter is good stuff, no doubt, but the more we learn about fish oil, the more we realize that DHA is the powerhouse omega-3 fatty acid.
For example, DHA plays the biggest role in preventing or slowing Alzheimer’s, boosting sexual health, preventing heart arrhythmias, lowering diastolic blood pressure, and increasing lifespan in general. DHA is the more powerful inflammation smasher.”
Sure. After this quote, Chris goes on about other benefits, but that is totally irrelevant. You need to keep in mind that every single study that has been made on DHA, EPA or similar supplements and compounds were performed on people that follow a typical modern western diet or a retarded plant-dominant ‘fitness diet’ that is extremely toxic and totally void of any bioavailable nutrition. So, simple logic dictates that every single subject in these studies was suffering from one or several nutrient deficiencies, from toxemia, and thus they were all very sickly, likely without even realizing it (just as the vast majority of today’s population.)
So, simply giving them anything that is from the animal kingdom, as in fish oil, will help with something — as they are deficient and sickly.
If you would do the same experiments on healthy people who follow our natural species-appropriate, species-specific diet, there would be zero benefits, as they are already as healthy as can be. Likely, you would get negative effects instead, from the toxins within the supplement and the toxic and unnatural process behind developing it.
You will get all the DHA and EPA you need by simply consuming meat daily.
Step 3: The Amount Needed for Benefits
“Almost every good study on fish oil shows its numerous health benefits, but not all of them. If you dig deep into these studies, what you often find is that the researchers simply didn’t use enough.”
Again, if you understood what I wrote above, you will understand that this is also totally irrelevant.
And Chris then claims that as a “supplement connoisseur (geek),” he looks for highly concentrated fish oil. Well, the higher the concentration, the more processed the oil, as in the intensity of the molecular distillation and filtration process, which simply means that the higher the concentration the more processed and damaged the product. That’s simple logic, Chris.
Step 4: The Bioavailability
“Pharmaceutical companies don’t just think about the drug itself. They think about how to get that drug in you to do its job: its bioavailability and absorption efficiency. That’s the best way to ensure consistent results.”
Try explaining bioavailability to vegans who think humans are ruminant animals like sheep and cows, or that we are like gorillas with a huge appendix that help them break down some plant material with the assist of bacteria (although gorillas, like most apes and monkeys, survive on consuming tons of insects, bugs, critters, and other small animals, as well as scavenging carcasses and bones of apex-predator kills.)
As humans, the only bioavailable source of nutrition is that of other animals and their produce. Scientists try to mimic this by changing the binding of different compounds so we can absorb them better. As for fish oil, this is done through the volatile self-emulsifying process.
You would think that any fish oil is highly bioavailable, as it comes from fish. However, it’s part of the meat of the fish, as in food-synergy. When removed and processed, it becomes a foreign bastardized compound especially as they have to add a lot of chemicals to keep it somewhat stable.
And after this Chris plugs their fish oil supplement as the holy grail of fish oils. Well, save your money and also make sure to read up on our natural species-appropriate, species-specific diet if you’re not already following it. That is the only road to perfect superior human health and longevity, and it will save you tons of money as you no longer will have any cravings for toxic processed junk foods or any need for expensive supplements. It’s a win-win!
And if you have any health-related concerns or questions, or if you simply need help to transition to our natural species-appropriate carnivorous way of eating, I’m available for both coaching and consultation.
