The Study
Comparative membrane incorporation of omega-3 fish oil triglyceride preparations differing by degree of re-esterification: A sixteen-week randomized intervention trial
This study is like a fair test where people were randomly given one of two fish oil pills to see which one gets into their blood cells better. It shows that the pill with more 're-esterified' fat form puts more omega-3s into cell membranes, but it doesn’t prove it makes people healthier.
Analysis score
Maximum 90 for a randomized controlled trial.
Where the score came from
This study tested two types of fish oil pills to see which one gets more omega-3s into your blood cells.
Where does this study sit?
Reviews of RCTs (Meta-analyses)
Max 100Randomized Trials
Max 90Reviews of Cohort Studies
Max 85Cohort Studies
Max 72Reviews of Case-Control Studies
Max 63Case-Control Studies
Max 58Cross-Sectional & Case Series
Max 50Expert Opinion
Max 575 / 100
Quality score
Participants are randomly assigned to treatment or control groups, minimizing bias. The gold standard for testing whether an intervention causes an effect.
Key takeaways
Summary
Based on the study abstract and findings.
- 1These differences mean the body uses the higher-quality fish oil more effectively, which could lead to better heart and brain health over time.
- 2After 16 weeks, the better-made fish oil (with more 're-esterified triglycerides') put more EPA, DHA, and DPA into red blood cells.
- 3For example, EPA went up to 3.11% vs 2.54%, DHA to 6.30% vs 5.82%, and DPA to 4.0% vs 3.6%.
Score breakdown, methodology, conflicts of interest, evidence analysis & raw study data
Publication
Journal
PLOS ONE
Year
2023
Authors
S. T. Minton, A. Almada, Joseph L. Evans, M. Laidlaw, Joar Opheim
Related Content
Claims (6)
Taking high-quality fish oil pills with more of a certain form (called re-esterified triglycerides) leads to higher levels of a healthy fat called DPA in your blood cells after four months, compared to lower-quality ones.
Taking a high-quality omega-3 pill every day for four months improves the balance between anti-inflammatory and pro-inflammatory fats in your blood cells more than a lower-quality one, even with a similar dose.
If you're a healthy young adult, taking a high-purity fish oil supplement might improve your blood fat levels faster than a lower-purity one — and you could see changes in just four weeks.
Fish oil supplements with over 95% re-esterified triglycerides (a type of fat form) seem to get more omega-3s into your blood cells after 16 weeks than those with less than 70%, so this might be a good sign of a better-quality supplement.
If you're a healthy young adult, taking a high-purity fish oil supplement might help your body absorb more of the good omega-3s (like EPA and DHA) into your red blood cells compared to a lower-purity version—even if the difference in dose is pretty small.
Fish oil in triglyceride form gets absorbed better by your body than the kind in ethyl ester form.
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a qualified healthcare professional before making health decisions.