About a month ago I posted on the response I had gotten from Neptune Technologies about refrigeration of krill oil. As you might recall, when we refrigerated ours, the capsules became leaky and stuck together. Neptune said it was a humidity problem, not a refrigeration problem.
I put some krill oil softgels in a glass container with a sealed lid, which I then put in the refrigerator. At the same time, I put some krill oil softgels in the fridge in the plastic bottle they came in. Today, the krill oil in the glass container is perfect while the softgels in the plastic container are gooey. It’s got to be the humidity. And it proves that plastic containers are not impervious to moisture-containing air.
I told a professional photographer friend of mine about this, and he told me that photographers never keep their developing chemicals in plastic bottles because air will get to them and cause problems. They always store photographic chemicals in glass containers.
The take home message is to transfer all your fish oil and krill oil into glass bottles and put it in the refrigerator for maximal shelf life.
For those who missed the earlier discussions, click here and here for older posts on the analgesic and anti-inflammatory properties of krill oil.
The official website of Drs. Michael and Mary Dan Eades, low carb pioneers and authors of Protein Power.
Hi
Aussie girl here again. I can’t find Krill oil in Australia but can get NEW ZEALAND GREEN LIPPED MUSSEL OIL (I think it might be by Blackmores?). would this be a reasonable substitute? it is expensive though.(sorry if I’ve asked this before- I was new to blogging & comments & kept ‘losing’ things)
cheers
Hi Lynne–
I’m not familiar with mussel oil. If you can post a list of what’s in it, I can maybe help.
Cheers–
MRE
Mike. I’d guess this is what Lynne is thinking about – which doesn’t tell you much apart from the omega 3 component – I wonder if the krill oil suppliers make the same claims (60x more potent than fish oil!)
Blackmores are one of the biggest supplement companies here.
Lynne drop in to the Empower forum (we don’t bite!)- thread here – (hope this is ok Mike?) – as you can see, there are a few who have bought krill oil supps since I first posted a link to Mikes first krill oil blog – and yes Lynne, I agree it’s ridiculous we have to import krill oil considering it is harvested not far south of here (Tasmania).
Hi Malcolm–
I can’t tell from the add for the mussels if the oil has a phospholipid structure or not, and since it’s the phospholipid structure that gives krill oil a large part of its benefit over plain fish oil, I can’t say whether or not the mussel oil is equivalent.
Best–
MRE
I’ve heard a similar argument against keeping coffee beans in the refrigerator/freezer, as some afficionados so, unless they’re sealed in something air-tight.
Hi Bob–
I had never heard that argument about coffee. Thanks for bringing it up. We do keep our coffee in the freezer, and not in airtight containers. Maybe we should try it that way to see if there is a difference.
Cheers–
MRE
Do you have any information on the purity of the fish oils used? Namely…the ratio of DHA/EPA. How important it this? I’ve noticed that different oils have different concentrations of these compounds and I’m wondering if the effects seen from fish oil should be reported in terms of amount of DHA/EPA and not amount of fish oil. My apologies if you’ve already posted on this.
Hi Javier–
No, I haven’t posted on it. First, I don’t know for sure why different brands have different amounts, but I suspect it has to do with what fish the oils come from and the distillation process used. I agree that it would be much more accurate to report the effects of fish oil as a function of the DHA/EPA ratio and absolute amounts of each one instead of just as fish oil.
Best–
MRE
Hi Dr. Eades,
I’ve been taking Krill for some time now and while I definitely can feel a reduction in the amount of general aches and pains, I’ve also noticed that when I take the oil I feel a little spacy and unable to focus throughout the day. I’ve started and stopped the oil several times for periods of one week (i.e. one week on one week off) to make sure it wasn’t just a daily variation in cognition. Have you had any experience with these symptoms or heard of anyone who may have? I’m in engineering school and certainly can’t afford to be unfocused (and preferably any other time for that matter) but I hate giving up the great benefits that Krill has to offer. Your thoughts on the matter would be appreciated!
Ned
Hi Ned–
Well, this is a first. I’ve never heard of anyone having your problems. In fact, most people report the opposite. I’m at a loss as to what could be causing it unless it’s something in the gelcap that you might be allergic to. Maybe the astaxanthin, the antioxidant that gives the krill oil its reddish color. If I were you, I would try fish oil to see if the same thing happens. If not, then it is something unique to the krill oil. Sometimes in situations like this, with continued use the problem goes away.
Wish I had a more definitive answer.
Keep me posted because I’m eager to hear how you do.
Cheers–
MRE
do you have any recommendations for shelf life. my carlson’s fish oil comes 100 in a bottle, and since i only take it every other day, and switch off with cod liver oil, it lasts almost a year! i cut one open, it just smells…very fishy, so hard to tell if it’s off smelling. for now, krill is still too pricey for me!
FYI–if i take higher doses i experience lightheadedness, don’t know why.
Hi susan–
As to the shelf life issue, I would put them in a glass bottle with an airtight lid and keep them in the fridge.
You’re the second person today to mention lightheadedness with taking omega-3 oils. As I told the other commenter, I don’t know what could cause that symptom.
Keep me posted as to how you do.
Best–
MRE
10 years ago I worked as an artist using water based products (paint, glue, finish, etc.). I used to keep product in both plastic containers and glass mason jars. I then quit working as an artist and packed stuff into storage. After one year everything in plastic was dried up and ruined. After 10 years everything in glass is still as fresh as it was 10 years ago. That’s how I learned how valuable glass is. I keep alot of stuff in glass now including dry dog kibble.
Hi Mandy–
Thanks for the report. What you related is pretty much what my photographer friend said, too.
Cheers–
MRE
Thanks for the info Dr. Mike! After reading your posts I’ve been taking krill oil for a little over 2 weeks (2 caps a day) and my knees feel much better. They don’t even hurt when going down stairs – which used to hurt way more than going up stairs.
Hi Crystal–
I’m glad the krill oil is working for you. If it hurts more going down than going up, you’ve probably got chondromalacia, which can be greatly improved by doing quadriceps resistance training.
Cheers–
MRE
This is good to know- and I was wondering what to do with all my empty coconut oil jars!
Thanks Dr. Eades!
Hi Lyndsey–
Glad to help.
Cheers–
MRE
regarding fish oil causing lightheadedness/fogginess, i also did enough experimentation with different types and brands, including krill, to know that it was definitely the fish/krill oil causing it. i thought i was the ONLY one! my thoughts were that 1) it could be lowering blood pressure enough to impact the brain, as i noticed postural hypotension. or 2) there may be some sort of vasodilation effect. i haven’t been able to find any answers through research so if if anyone else has any thoughts, i am interested. in the meantime, i suggest the student above take it only a few times a week (not on test day!) which i have found minimizes the brain drain effect.
Hi Susan–
Thanks for the further info. I’ll keep my ear to the ground to see if I can come up with any info on this situation.
Best–
MRE
I just figured out that high doses of cod liver oil are probably causing my lightheadedness, too. I was taking the cod liver oil to counteract a severe adverse reaction to treatment with Ciprofloxacin, but I think I may have overdone it and need to stop for awhile. Glad this site was here, so that I could unravel the mystery.
I’m glad it helped.
Cheers–
MRE
I did the fish oil freezer test: First Vitality says consumers can find out whether their omega-3 supplements contain a high proportion of saturated fat by placing them in the freezer for 24 hours. It says that if the capsules turn cloudy then they could be “capsules of lard”.
I got this statement from:
http://www.nutraingredients.com/news/ng.asp?n=74164-omega-first-vitality-goed-toxins
It also was a report on TV news.
I did the test with krill oil and it froze solid. I don’t know if the same test applies to krill oil. Should I be worried?
O!
Hi Obade–
It’s no problem if the krill oil freezes solid in the freezer.
Cheers–
MRE
I’m reading now where krill oil should not be refrigerated. It should not reach temperatures above 100 or below 50. I’ve had mine in the fridge all this time. It would seem logical to me that since krill come from Antarctic waters, the fridge should pose no problem. Have I ruined my krill oil stash?
Hi Obade–
Nope, you haven’t ruined your krill oil stash. It should be fine. I would worry about the heat but not the fridge.
Cheers–
MRE
I have been doing a search this morning to find any info on the possible link between fish oil consumption and lightheadedness. I was taking it for about 3 months and during that time suffered lots of lightheadedness/dizziness but did not connect the dots until I ran out and did not get around to replacing for about a month. During this month I was back to normal and that’s when the penny dropped. So I have bought more to see if it was s a coincidence. This morning after only about 3 days on it I have woken up feeling lightheaded again. I’m going to stop, leave it go a few weeks and try it again but I do think there may be a connection and was interested to read a couple of the above similar reactions. Does anyone know why this might happen? Could it be reducing blood pressure?
Thanks
Would be a good question for Dr. McCleary.
I have been using krill oil daily for two weeks, and noticed that my blood pressure has dropped about 10% during those two weeks. No lightheadedness noticed though. Although I am not certain about the connection to krill oil, the change is unusual. I have a read a lot about krill oil, but I have not seen it described as “blood pressure lowering.”
I haven’t either, but it obviously did in your case.
Wondering what your thoughts are about Krill being subjected to heat during the shipment and storage before it reaches consumer. I’ve heard conflicting things, as such, I feel it best to order direct from local heath food store now. Any input?
As of right now, there are only two producers of krill oil in the world. All the krill oil made comes from these two entities. The local health food store gets its products shipped from one of the same two sources and is as likely to have had the product it receives be damaged by heat during shipment as if you ordered it directly yourself. But you can’t order it directly and neither can the local health food store, because everyone except for large bottlers of the product purchase from middlemen. So, whatever product you’re getting has gone through multiple hands and multiple shipping processes before reaching you. In my view, the best thing you can do – and the thing I do without fail – is to bite into one of the krill softgels you get to see how it tastes. If it is rancid, you’ll know it. If not, it tastes okay. It’s not unpleasant. I actually chew one whole thing up – softgel and all – out of each bottle I get. Then I put it in the refrigerator, so it will keep longer.