Rhonda currently takes an omega-3 supplement called Norwegian PURE-3, which is touted as a high quality fish oil with low levels of oxidation.
It comes in 2 versions; high DHA and high EPA.
Rhonda currently takes 2g of the high EPA in the morning and 2g of the high DHA in the evening.
Unfortunately this particular product (Norwegian PURE-3) has had inventory issues for some time and is unavailable for order.
Rhonda was asked in her June 2021 members Q&A what alternatives she would suggest…
Table of Contents
Norwegian Pure-3 Alternative?
Rhonda’s alternative suggestion is to check the IFOS site (International Fish Oil Standards), and use their batch testing of oxidation and heavy metal levels to guide your product choice.
Below is a list of fish oils that have both low oxidation and heavy metal levels, as measured by the IFOS testing.
For a bigger version of this table with more products and details, see this spreadsheet. It also includes a section for brands specific to UK & Canada.
| Name | Price | Quantity | Flavored? | EPA/DHA per soft gel |
Total Oxidation* | Heavy Metals** |
| Viva Naturals Triple Strength | $22 | 90 soft gels | Unflavored | 700 / 240 mg | 6.30 | Passed |
| Barlean’s Ideal Omega 3 | $41.54 | 60 soft gels | Orange Flavor | 750 / 250 mg | 3.76 | Passed |
| Carlson Maximum Omega 2000 | $35.92 | 90 soft gels | Lemon Flavor | 625 / 250 mg | 6.09 | Passed |
*Oxidation levels come via IFOS batch tests. Lower is better.
**Heavy metals will never be zero, but “Passed” in this context means that it passed the IFOS tests and is low enough to not be of concern.
After trying a number of fish oil supplements, and noticing I prefer them without added flavoring, I’m personally using Viva Naturals Triple Strength. This coupon code gives 10% off orders, in case that’s of use.
Vegetarian / Vegan Fish Oil Alternatives?
Rhonda personally opts to get her omega-3s from fish oil, due to its high levels of EPA & DHA per gram.
However, when asked on Joe Rogan’s podcast how vegetarians can supplement EPA & DHA, she believed algae oil is the optimal source.
In part, this is because fish don’t actually produce omega-3s, instead they get them from the plankton and algae in their diet – so by consuming algae you’re going direct to the source1.
In a non supplemented vegetarian/vegan diet, the primary source of omega-3 fatty acids comes from alpha linoleic acid (ALA), which is found in various plants (particularly flaxseed).
However, the omega-3s EPA & DHA are also important to humans, so relying on ALA solely has a few issues:
- ALA is weakly converted to EPA – Research estimates between 0.2% to 6% of ALA is converted to EPA2. This aligns with a presentation by Dr Bill Harris, the omega-3 expert Rhonda interviewed, where he estimates less than 5% of ALA is converted to EPA (link).
- ALA barely converts to DHA – The same research paper above estimates 0.05% or less of ALA is converted to DHA3. In Dr Bill Harris’ presentation above, he similarly estimates less than 0.1% of ALA is converted to DHA.
- This aligns with research showing that vegetarians and vegans have lower levels of EPA & DHA compared to those who eat fish4.
The good news is that research shows algae based omega-3s will raise EPA & DHA levels in vegans, even at relatively low dose5. A study showed their omega-3 index score went from 3.1 to 4.8 after 4 months of taking 172mg DHA & 82mg of EPA per day.
Using Rhonda’s suggestion to utilize the supplementing testing results from Labdoor.com and IFOS, I’ve compiled a short list of algae based omega-3s, so you can see their approximate cost per gram of EPA & DHAs:
| Name | Price | Quantity | Flavored? | EPA/DHA $/gram |
| Nature’s Way – NutraVege | $18.39 | 30 soft gels | Sorbitol Sweetener | $4.09 / $2.04 |
| Nordic Naturals – Algae Omega | $25.46 | 60 soft gels | Sorbitol Sweetener | $4.35 / $2.18 |
| Source Naturals – Non-Fish Omega-3s | $14.69 | 30 soft gels | Sorbitol sweetener | $5.44 / $2.72 |
^ Rhonda recently interviewed Omega-3 expert Dr Bill Harris (link)
The Omega-3 Index Test
Rhonda notes in her recent Joe Rogan interview (#1701) she’s a proponent of what’s called the “omega-3 index test”. Mentioning that higher levels are associated with a lower risk of all-cause mortality6.
In essence, it measures the omega-3 fatty acids in your red blood cells, expressed as a percentage of the total fatty acids. With a score of 8% or greater being correlated with better health outcomes7.
The company that make this test, OmegaQuant, offer it as an at home “dried blood spot” test. Fortunately it doesn’t require much blood, just single drop onto a piece of card, which you then post back. OmegaQuant was founded by Bill Harris who Rhonda interviewed (link). The test comes in 3 versions:
- Omega-3 Index Basic Test ($49) – which provides the omega-3 index score only
- Omega-3 Index Plus Test ($74) – which provides the index score + trans fat index, omega-6 to omega-3 ratio & AA:EPA ratio (inflammation marker)
- Omega-3 Index Complete Test ($99) – which provides everything in the Plus test, and then in addition includes a trans fat index & individual fatty acid levels
For 10% off the tests, use this OmegaQuant coupon code.
^ Rhonda displaying her paper on mitigating APOE4 induced Alzheimer’s disease risk
Omega-3 Phospholipids, Alzheimer’s & APOE4
This next section is mainly relevant to those with the APOE4 gene. It’s estimated that around 25% of the population have it. You can check this by getting a 23andMe test (their cheaper ancestry test is sufficient) – and then exporting the raw data they provide into Rhonda’s genetic report or to Promethease. 23andMe’s more expensive health package should include APOE4 testing.
APOE4 increases Alzheimer’s risk between 2-3x if you’ve 1 allele and 15x if you’ve 2 allele’s.
One of the reasons for the increase in Alzheimer’s risk with APOE4 is that it impairs regular DHA transport.
In 2018 Rhonda published an open access paper on a possible mechanism for getting DHA into the brain, which bypasses the impaired route.
Rhonda’s paper proposes that consuming DHA in phospholipid form gets around impaired DHA transport. The reason for this is that phospholipid DHA gets converted to DHA-lysoPC, by a specialized transporter called MFSD2A. This transport system appears to continue to work even when regular DHA transport is impaired.
Providing DHA to the brain again, in the form of DHA-lysoPC, may reduce Alzheimer’s disease risk.
According to Rhonda, omega-3 phospholipids are found in fish, and in greatest concentration in fish roe (fish eggs).
Where Rhonda gets her Omega-3 Phospholipids from
Rhonda currently gets hers via wild salmon roe caviar, instead of using a supplement version. She bulk buys her caviar from Vital Choice, who offer it in 2.2lbs packages that can be frozen, and then defrosted one quarter at a time. Consuming this in addition to her regular omega-3 supplementation.
She opted for the salmon roe caviar instead of her previous omega-3 phospholipid supplements, after learning it’s superior.
Fish Oil Rhonda Doesn’t Use Anymore
It’s probably clarifying which fish oil supplements Rhonda isn’t taking anymore – for avoidance of confusion. She no longer takes:
- Nordic Naturals – ProOmega 2000 – she took this up until around 2017 (see last tweet mentioning). Not to be confused with the supplement she recently mentioned – Carlson Maximum Omega 2000. Since she stopped with Nordic Naturals, she has been taking NPure-3.
- Nordic Naturals – Omega-3 Phospholipids – she took this up until around 2016 (see last tweet mentioning). However, she has since moved to consuming the salmon roe caviar mentioned above.
- Krill Oil – prior to taking the Omega-3 phospholipids supplement by Nordic Naturals, she was taking krill oil. However, she replaced both with salmon roe caviar – and no longer takes krill oil.
Closing Words
Above we’ve looked at the importance of omega-3 fatty acids and how Rhonda incorporates them into her diet. For more on the subject, see a video Rhonda created on omega-3s and their importance in reducing cardiovascular disease.
Hopefully the above was helpful, if you’ve any questions, please leave them in the comments below.
– – –
For more Rhonda Patrick related content, see below:
- A relatively comprehensive list of supplements that Rhonda has discussed taking, some daily, some for specific use-cases (link)
- A detailed post on Rhonda’s diet – including examples of her breakfast, lunch and dinner (link)
- A post on Rhonda’s approach to exercise + examples of what she does (link)
- Notes on many of the key things Rhonda has discussed about pregnancy, breastfeeding & baby health – based on her journey into motherhood (link)
References:
- Omega-3: A Link between Global Climate Change and Human Health – Jing X. Kang | 2011 | Biotechnology Advances
- Metabolism of α-linolenic acid in humans – G.C. Burdge | (see section 7.2 of paper) | 2006 | Journal: PLEFA
- Metabolism of α-linolenic acid in humans – G.C. Burdge | (see section 7.2 of paper) | 2006 | Journal: PLEFA
- Blood docosahexaenoic acid and eicosapentaenoic acid in vegans: Associations with age and gender and effects of an algal-derived omega-3 fatty acid supplement – Sarter et al. | 2014 | Clinical Nutrition
- Blood docosahexaenoic acid and eicosapentaenoic acid in vegans: Associations with age and gender and effects of an algal-derived omega-3 fatty acid supplement – Sarter et al. | 2014 | Clinical Nutrition
- Blood n-3 fatty acid levels and total and cause-specific mortality from 17 prospective studies – Harris et al. | 2021 | Nature Communications
- The Omega-3 Index: Clinical Utility for Therapeutic Intervention | William Harris | 2010 | Current Cardiology Reports
Why does she never mention pollution contaminants found in fish oil?
Hi Jack. There are a lot of pollutants out there – did you have a specific one in mind? Rhonda specifically talks about using IFOS public testing records to help choose fish oils. Their tests measure:
– PCBs
– Dioxans and furans
– Dioxin like PCBs
– Mercury
– Lead
– Arsenic
– Cadmium
If the product batch has elevated levels of any of those, it won’t pass the test. If its levels are high, but under their cut-off threshold, then you’ll see that in the results.
The way to check this is via https://certifications.nutrasource.ca
I’m wondering if Thorne is actually a reputable company. I saw a post online saying that Thorne won’t release their COA, certificate of analysis. Somebody emailed them about it. I will link it at the bottom of this post.
https://www.reddit.com/r/Supplements/comments/pvii65/can_we_please_pressure_thorne_into_releasing/?utm_medium=android_app&utm_source=share
Hi Lucas – thanks for the share. The OPs follow up post to the thread gives some further context on the discussion. I definitely think more independent third party testing would be a good thing in the supplement industry. As to Thorne specifically, it appears they had a bad result from ConsumerLab’s testing of their “Basic Bone Nutrients” product (link to paywalled review). Where it apparently only had 2.2% of the listed amount of vitamin K. That’s definitely concerning that 1 of the 4 ingredients was so low. However, I don’t think that immediately blemishes their entire range. It *does*… Read more »
The Carlson’s Maximum Omega 3 does not show up on the labdoor website. The only one that does is Carlson Labs Very Finest Fish Oil, which got a D.
Hi, that’s correct. For the batch reports that cover potency, purity, stability, oxidation and heavy metals – see the IFOS site product page. Scroll down to testing results and download the PDFs.
Hi John, thank you for this great post.
What do you think about the studies showing that algae oil has lower level of Peroxide, Anisdine and Totox?
Hi. If you have a link to the studies you’re referring to I’m happy to take a look.
This is the link
https://www.researchgate.net/figure/Peroxide-a-anisidine-b-and-total-oxidation-TOTOX-c-levels-of-over-the-counter_fig2_284078017
Thanks!
Ok, so they’ve taken the average values.
Yeah, I think either route one goes, you want to look at some lab studies of the particular brand to understand their TOTOX values. Even if it’s algae based.
For example the Viva Naturals I linked to is well under the averages of the TOTOX values they listed, in the particular lab analysis I viewed.
You could check Labdoor to see if they’d analyzed some algae based oils.
Hey John. I contacted WHC. It indeed as orange aroma, but not in the fish oil. It is in the gelatine capsule. The p-Anisidine value was thus measured correctly and therefore the TOTOX of 6-8 on average is valid. It is expensive though, but Viva is not available in EU.
I am still not sure what the benefits are for otherwise healthy young individuals if you eat sardines or salmon twice a weak. It’s such an expensive addition when you supplement with 3 to 4 grams of EPA/DHA. like 1 or 2 euro’s.
Hi, good work getting that extra info. However, it’s not clear to me that the orange flavouring being in the capsule, rather than put directly into the oil is proof that the flavouring doesn’t interact with the total oxidation value. From anecdotal experience with flavouring, it tends to permeate quickly through food items when in touching distance. Can we be certain that the flavoring in the capsule doesn’t bleed into the fish oil that gets held inside it for days/weeks/months? To your second point, I would agree, if you’re already eating oily fish 2x or more per week, then the… Read more »
Hi John, great post! I’m trying to figure out what is the best amount to take per day? How many soft gels does Rhonda take and what dosage? At present, I have the brand bulk powders ‘Omega 3 (1000mg)’.
Also is there anyway I can establish what the TOTOX level is before buying online?
Hi Claire. Last time Rhonda discussed her omega-3 supplementation she was taking a high dose. 6 capsules per day, so 6g (6,000mg) total. Regarding the total oxidation, we’re reliant on either the brand publishing that (I haven’t seen any that do), or independent testing. This study (link) is interesting, they tested “171 North American over-the-counter n-3 PUFA nutritional supplements”, and found “Of the products successfully tested, 50% exceeded the voluntary recommended levels for markers of oxidation. Another 18% of products were approaching the limits with 1–3 years before expiration.” Which suggests at least that this is a problem to be… Read more »
Hi,
Im looking for a good quality cod liver oil that contains natural vitamins, any recommendations?
Thank you
From what I understand the more important focus for omega-3 oils is their EPA & DHA quantity, where they’re sourced from (generally smaller fish is better) and their total oxidation (TOTOX) measurement. The lower the TOTOX, the better. Then separately get a good quality multivitamin, rather than conflating the two things (omega-3 and vitamins).
Hi John,
Has Rhonda looked into the Omega 3 concentration of other fish eggs like flying fish roe also known as tobiko? It is considerably less expensive.
Thanks,
Edward
Yes, Rhonda has mentioned them before, and didn’t have any negatives to say regarding flying fish roe. For example see this tweet. Also search this webpage for “flying fish” and you can see the section she talks about it in one of her old podcasts. She just has a personal preference for salmon roe. She has said previously: “Fish roe from salmon, herring, pollock, and flying fish contain approximately 38%-75% of their omega-3 fatty acids in phospholipid form, mostly present in phosphatidylcholine”. Hope that helps.
Thanks. I can’t find the exact percentage of PLs in flying fish roe, but I like it, so I’ll just eat a lot of it.
Is she taking all of these at once? Also, how much of the roe in mgs or ounces is recommended. Thanks
Hi Cameron. When you say all of these – no, not all the products listed above simultaniously. She currently takes Norwegian Pure-3 for fish oils, and consumes the salmon roe as a concentrated source of Omega-3 phospholipids. I listed the other fish oils as previous examples of what she had taken. And as possible alternatives to Norwegian Pure-3 which doesn’t yet ship from the USA (although hopefully that will change).
In terms of quantities of salmon roe, I’ve never heard Rhonda talk about specifics. But from her pictures it appears to be up to 1 tablespoon per serving.
The OMEGA-3 Pure -3 Norwegian capsules say that they’re in TG form. I thought you guys were recommending the phospholipid form?
Rhonda uses both “regular” fish oil in triglyceride form (where she specifically uses N-Pure3 brand currently) and phospholipid omega-3s, which she primarily gets from fish roe. The latter (phospholipid form omega-3) is particularly beneficial to those with APOE4 mutations, because it’s absorbtion in the brain isn’t hindered by the effect of the particular DNA mutation.
Hi,
Trying to find source to purchase supplies of OMEGA-3 Pure -3 Norwegian capsules. in US. Can you direct me please?
Hi Robin. Currently (as far as I know) Npure3 only ship directly from their base in Norway. They don’t have a USA based retailer that I’m aware of – meaning shipping takes a bit longer (and costs more) than it would normally. I emailed them a while back asking when they would sell on Amazon, and was told it’s in the works, but seems to be taking a while.
Your site is a great resource, John. Where did Rhonda say she takes Norwegian pure 3 DHA in the pink packaging? I listened to her Crowdcast but she just mentioned Norwegian Pure 3.
Hi Nadia, thanks for the message. Good question. Here’s a link to the section of Rhonda’s crowdcast where she discusses this… hope that helps.
Listen out for her mentioning “high DHA”.