Fish Oil vs. Krill
Is krill a better source of omega-3 fats or just the latest marketing craze? Find out whether this new supplement is worth the premium price.
Monica Reinagel, MS, LD/N, CNS
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Fish Oil vs. Krill
by Monica Reinagel, M.S., L.D./N.
I’ve gotten half a dozen requests from readers to weigh in on krill oil, an omega-3 supplement that’s being heavily marketed right now. I’m sure you’re aware of the many health benefits of omega-3 fats: They can reduce your risk of heart disease and stroke, reduce pain from arthritis and other inflammatory conditions, improve your triglyceride and blood glucose levels, and may even help protect against depression, dementia, and Alzheimer’s disease.
Because most of us don’t eat fish more than once or twice a week, lots of people take fish oil as a dietary supplement to ensure that they’re getting a steady supply. Now along comes krill oil, a new source of omega-3s that’s supposed to be even better for you than fish oil! Of course, it’s also more expensive. So let’s take a closer look at what advantages krill oil might (or might not) offer.
What is Krill?
Most fish oil supplements contain oil extracted from menhaden, anchovies, mackerel, cod, salmon, or tuna. Krill are not fish but a type of crustacean related to the shrimp. (If you have a shellfish allergy, krill oil is probably not for you.) In addition to omega-3 fatty acids, krill oil contains astaxanthin, an antioxidant from the carotenoid family. Astaxanthin is found in sea algae and it’s what gives shrimp, lobster, salmon, krill and other sea-life that feed on algae their rosy color.
How to Compare Omega-3 Supplements
When comparing different omega-3 supplements, the first thing you want to do is check how much EPA and DHA they provide. Remember, there are lots of different fatty acids in the omega-3 family and while all omega-3 fats are good for you, EPA and DHA are the most potent ones. A supplement with a higher percentage of EPA and DHA will provide more benefit per pill than one with a lower percentage.
The concentrations of EPA and DHA can vary significantly from product to product. Check the nutrition facts label on the side of the bottle—and be sure to notice how many capsules they are counting as a “serving.” To keep things simple, just add the DHA and EPA together to get a single number.
In a representative sampling of omega-3 supplements from an online retailer, the amount of EPA + DHA per 1,000 mg of fish oil ranged from 275 mg to 850 mg. When it comes to cost-effectiveness, what matters is not how much you’re paying per pill—or even per milligram of fish oil—but how much you’re paying per milligram of EPA and DHA. In my sample group, 500mg of EPA + DHA cost anywhere from $0.15 to $0.40.
The concentration of EPA and DHA in krill oil tends to be substantially lower, about 200 mg of EPA + DHA per 1,000mg. And as I mentioned earlier, krill oil supplements are quite a bit more expensive than regular fish oil. In the end, it’ll cost you about $2.50 to get 500mg of EPA + DHA—making krill oil about 10 times more expensive than fish oil.
Here’s a table summarizing my results:
| Country | |||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Brand
|
Cost per 1,000 mg
(list price)
|
EPA + DHA per 1,000 mg
|
Cost per 500 mg EPA + DHA
|
|
Neptune Krill Oil
|
$1.50
|
240 mg
|
$3.00
|
|
Mercola Krill Oil
|
$1.06
|
155 mg
|
$3.00
|
|
Nature’s Way Krill Oil
|
$1.30
|
240 mg
|
$2.50
|
|
Nordic Naturals Omega 3
|
$0.22
|
275 mg
|
$0.40
|
|
Nordic Naturals Ultimate Omega
|
$0.38
|
550 mg
|
$.035
|
|
Twin Lab Mega-Twin EPA
|
.$50
|
760 mg
|
$0.33
|
|
Carlson Labs Super Omega-3
|
$0.23
|
500 mg
|
$0.23
|
|
Country Life Omega-3 Fish Body Oils
|
$0.12
|
300 mg
|
$0.20
|
|
Vitamin Shoppe Omega-3
|
$0.16
|
500 mg
|
$0.16
|
Is Krill Oil Better Absorbed?
Now, of course, if you want me to pay ten times more for something, you’re going to have to convince me that it’s superior in some significant way. And the folks selling krill oil argue that its omega-3s are arranged in a unique molecular structure, making them more efficiently absorbed than the omega-3s in fish oil.
In fact, a handful of small studies show that the omega-3 fatty acids in krill oil are better absorbed than those in fish oil. But not ten times better. Only about one and half times better. If I factor the more efficient absorption into my cost-effectiveness calculations, it lowers the effective cost of krill oil. Now it’s only about 8 times more expensive than fish oil.
Not so fast, say the krill marketers! Krill oil also contains astaxanthin, that fancy pink antioxidant I mentioned earlier. But taking krill oil for the antioxidants is like buying a Jaguar for the windshield wipers. There are a lot more cost-effective ways to improve the antioxidant status of your diet…such as eating a carrot.
Krill Oil and Cholesterol
Finally, I want to mention one additional study—also funded by a company that sells krill oil—which found that people taking krill oil saw significant decreases in their LDL (or “bad”) cholesterol and triglycerides whereas people taking fish oil saw only modest improvements. While I would like to see these results confirmed by additional research, this is one aspect in which krill oil appears to offer something special. And although krill may be expensive compared to fish oil, it’s cheap compared to cholesterol-lowering medications. Don’t make any changes in your prescribed medications without checking in with your doctor. But if you have stubbornly high cholesterol or triglycerides, you might want to talk with your doctor about giving krill oil a try.
Otherwise, when it comes to omega-3s, I think regular fish oil (or actual fish) is a better investment. And for tips on how to get more benefit from less omega-3, see my episode on Fish Oil and Omega-3s.
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Fish Oil image courtesy of Shutterstock
About the Author
Monica Reinagel is a board-certified licensed nutritionist, author, and the creator of one of iTunes’ most highly ranked health and fitness podcasts. Her advice is regularly featured on the TODAY show, Dr. Oz, NPR, and in the nation’s leading newspapers, magazines, and websites. Do you have a nutrition question? Call the Nutrition Diva listener line at 443-961-6206. Your question could be featured on the show.