Thread by @AlpacaAurelius

FISH OIL IS SNAKE OIL

Using some good ol fashion science trickery, we've been conned into thinking fish oils are essential and healthy.

However, consuming them in excess will increase your risk of diabetes, cancer, & neurodegeneration.

Let's discuss

Many health conscious people today think fish oils are superdrugs that can boost cognitive function, lower inflammation and improve heart health. Doctors even recommend that nursing & pregnant mothers supplement it for their babies.

This has birthed a $10bn+ industry.

The truth, however, is that DHA & EPA may have short term benefits (i'll describe below), but this is at a MASSIVE long term health expense

DHA and EPA are PUFAs just like linoleic acid in canola oil...except they have 6 double bonds instead of 3, making them even MORE unstable

Many of you likely know by now that this is why the seed oils, like canola oil, are bad for you.

The double bonds allow oxygen to sneak in and oxidize the fatty acids.

When “oxidized” they produce toxic byproducts Acrolein, HNE and MDA.

Acrolein is the toxin found in cigarette smoke that causes lung damage. HNE and MDA are both cytotoxic and mutagenic — they kill cells and alter DNA.

But fish oils do this too AND more.

Unsaturated fatty acids in fish are meant to protect them in the COLD water.

This is why you don't want to store your cod liver oil in the sun. But regardless, when it enters your body it warms up to 98 degrees and oxidizes then.

So unless you're a fish swimming in cold water all day, then you probably don't want your tissues to turn unsaturated.

But isn't it just omega 6s that are bad, you may say....

This here is the last defense of the omega 6 industry...and it's worked.

They've persuaded you into thinking that omega 6s are only bad when not balanced with omega 3.

But the truth is that BOTH are terrible for you.

"AREN'T OMEGA 3's ESSENTIAL?"

This misconception goes back to one study in 1929 on Burr's rats...but it turns out they were not deficient in DHA, they were deficient in all the B vitamins, which weren't discovered yet.

Yes, there is some DHA in your brain. But that doesn't mean you have to consume it.

This study here shows that it can be synthesized from the more stable alpha-linoleic-acid.

Additionally, grass fed steak and animal fats will have some omega 3s in it.

WHAT ABOUT THE BENEFITS?

All of the studies showing benefits are due:

#1 Poor science
#2 some short term benefits
#3 High nutrient content in omega 3 rich foods

In the 1980s oil promoters started comparing fish oil to corn, soy oil and safflower oil.

The subjects were healthier on fish oil, of course, just because it was being compared to worse oils.

On top of this, the studies weren't controlled for the high nutrient content.

WHAT ABOUT OMEGA 3: OMEGA 6?

I will get into this more below, but omega 3s due indeed suppress some of the inflammation that omega 6s can cause. This shows short term benefits, but it comes at a massive long term expense.

X-rays, for instance, do something similar. They are also immunosuppressive and lower inflammation over the short term.

They were actually used to treat autoimmune conditions before people realized that the immunosuppression ultimately led to cancer.

You've been tricked into thinking omega 3s are any better than omega 6 pufas...when in reality they are PUFAs just like the canola oil you're eating...

The only difference is that some people are purposefully guzzling it thinking they're healthy.

DANGERS

Now onto the dangers. Fish oils, should be looked at like drugs...and according to Ray Peat they should never have been declared safe because of the dangers I will describe below.

#1 Oxidation

DHA and EPA are even more unstable than linoleic acid as they have 6 double bonds vs 3.

This is why many fish oil products will go rancid in the bottle.

But the problem is that even if they don't go rancid in the bottle, they will in your body.

So even if you buy "high quality, cold pressed" it doesn't matter because your gut is most definitely not "gently cold pressing" the oil.

This study shows the harsh digestion oxidizes cod liver oil into MDA and 4HNE

A reminder that these byproducts MDA and 4HNE are elevated in almost every disease from alzheimers to cancer to diabetes.

Additionally, even if they are not oxidized during digestion, they will end up being incorporated into the fatty acids in your mitochondria making the mitochondria more susceptible to oxidation.

Oxidized mitochondrial cardiolipin decreases mitochodnrial function, lowers ATP synthesis and contributes to all disease.

This may be why some studies show that the saturated to unsaturated fat ratio of mitochodnria predicts longevity.

#2 Alzheimers Disease

In pretty much every neurological disorder you can find elevated levels of lipid peroxidation products.

This study shows that DHA contributes to lower energy and brain swelling.

This one below shows that isprostanes -- breakdown products of DHA -- were elevated in Alzheimer's patients.

My DMs on instagram are full of people messaging about how someone in their family took fish oil for 30 years and now has dementia. Be very careful.

#3 Immunosuppression

This study below helps capture why there are some short term benefits to omega 3 consumption: they suppress the immune system and thus inflammation.

But chronic immune suppression has drastic consequences, leading to infections and cancers.

In this study, fish oil caused a 50% reduction in natural killer cell activity: immune cells whcih respond to viruses and tumors.

#4 Cancer

Coupled with the toxic byproducts, one of the consequences of chronic immune suppression is increased susceptibility to cancer.

These studies below show increased rates of skin cancer, prostate cancer, colon cancer and breast cancer.

#5 Decrease in glucose utilization and metabolism

Excess omega 3s are toxic to the mitochondria and thus impair glucose utilization.

Similar to the seed oils, I belive omega 3s are contributing to the rise in diabetes and metabolic syndrome.

#6 A-Fib

Omega 3s and their toxic byproducts disrupt mitochondrial function. The heart, with its high mitochondrial density, is one of the first organs attacked.

Similar to the seed oils, I belive omega 3s are contributing to the rise in diabetes and metabolic syndrome.

CONCLUSION

Fish oil are for fish, not humans.

You should avoid ALL polyunsaturated fatty acids, including fish oils.

Get your fat soluble vitamins and trace minerals elsewhere.