Quality of Fish-Oil-Based Dietary Supplements Available on the Italian Market: A Preliminary Study.

Teresina Nevigato,Roberto Caproni,Maurizio Masci

doi:10.3390/molecules26165015

Abstract

The global market of food supplements is growing rapidly with a large turnover. Fish oil supplements represent a significant part of this turnover as they are believed to have important health benefits. Conversely, there are few papers in the literature about the quality control of fish oil capsules. As prior studies illustrate, a perfect agreement with the label is rarely found, and in some isolated cases, large amounts of soybean oil are also detected, indicating a true adulteration rather than a non-compliance with the label. None of the available studies refer to the Italian market, which ranks first in Europe in the consumption of food supplements. In this present communication, a quality control of fish-oil-based supplements from the Italian market was carried out for the first time. With minor deviations, all results showed substantial agreement with the label. However, the most important conclusion from this research is that compliance with the label is not enough to judge a product of good quality. The analysis of the overall fatty acid composition showed that some supplements have a high level of saturated fatty acids, and therefore they did not undergo a proper purification process. This may represent a safety issue since the purification process also allows the removal of toxic contaminants.

Highlights

It is widely recognized that fish consumption prevents cardiovascular diseases and acts positively against other important pathologies
This is due to the composition of fatty acids rich in omega-3, known as n-3 fatty acids or n-3 long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (n-3 LC-PUFA), with eicosapentaenoic (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) as the major representatives
A total of 46 FAs were detected in supplement no. 1, while in supplements no. 2 and no. 3, 55 and 47 FAs were detected, respectively

Summary

Introduction

It is widely recognized that fish consumption prevents cardiovascular diseases and acts positively against other important pathologies. This is due to the composition of fatty acids rich in omega-3, known as n-3 fatty acids or n-3 long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (n-3 LC-PUFA), with eicosapentaenoic (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) as the major representatives. Fish-oil-based food supplements have had a growing market in recent years because they are expected to have the same beneficial effects as fish consumption. Is the leading consumer of food supplements in Europe with a market share of 23% and a turnover of EUR 3.3 billion in 2018 [3]. In 2016, four million packs of omega-3 supplements were purchased in Italy for a total cost of EUR 84 million [4]

Methods

Results

Conclusion