Do you smell something?

Bite This: According to the NIH, in 2012 fish oil supplements were the most popular natural product used by US adults.

Today I had the pleasure of having lunch with one of my dearest friends. The usual topics were discussed – work, traveling, who waxes her eyebrows, inflammation in the body – that sort of stuff. As we were discussing inflammation in the body, we started talking about fish oil supplements.

As you know (or maybe I have never mentioned this), I am a big proponent of fish oil supplements due to the amount of EPA and DHA that they provide. I know that I mentioned EPA and DHA a time or two, but as a reminder, DHA is an omega-3 fatty acid which is good for improving cognitive ability, preventing cognitive decline as we age, among many other benefits. EPA and DHA are also anti-inflammatory so are often taken to help prevent cardiovascular disease.

We tend to not consume enough DHA from the diet, as it is mainly found in fatty fish and certain types of fortified eggs. So, in efforts to consume more, fish oil supplements are recommended.  This is where my story continues.

I asked my friend if she takes fish oil supplements as an anti-inflammatory, you know, to help with all of the inflammation we’ve got going on in our bodies. She smiled and said that fish oil supplements make her smell fishy. It’s not that I didn’t believe her, but I laughed at the thought of my perfume-wearing, perfectly put-together, debutante friend smelling fishy. It actually reminds me of that Seinfeld episode (found here) when Jerry had his car valeted and the valet guy had such offensive BO that it went everywhere with anyone who sat in the car. So when Elaine was on a date, her date smelled her hair which smelled like this BO and was turned off immediately.  Not that my friend would turn anyone off because of her fishy smell, but that’s what I thought of.  So she does not take fish oil supplements for this reason. She would go out with friends and ask them if they smelled something fishy, and then she realized it was her all along.

After our leisurely lunch, I went back to my desk to research why fish oil supplements make some people actually smell fishy.  Turns out this is a common side effect of fish oil supplements due to impurities in the fish oil supplement or when taken in high doses. However, I could not find much more information on this topic.  One way to eliminate or reduce this is to start with a low dose and gradually increase it.

Do not let this deter you from taking fish oil supplements!  Make sure you get a brand that is purified. Nature’s Made is one such brand.

Okay, so that was a whole lot of writing for very little information, but it was fun, wasn’t it?

Sound bite: Try freezing your fish oil supplement to reduce belching and acid reflux and possibly body odor.