Comment · Sat, February 16, 2019
Is there something different about ND's krill oil that justifies the high price compared to other brands?
Original post in this thread
notaloser_ · 5 points
For example, it's almost three times as expensive as the most affordable and popular krill oil supplement on iHerb. The only krill oil on there (from the first 10 or so results) that's more expensive is the one from Mercola.
What they were answering
Hywardhayward · 1 points
Do you have opinion on Ethyl ester vs triglyceride fish oils?
u/MisterYouAreSoDumb
Triglyceride forms seem to be slightly more bioavailable in acute doses. This seems to be 20-30% higher a most. That's not enough to justify the drastic increase in price, though. Furthermore, triglyceride forms are hydrolized much quicker than ethyl esters. So you get a longer and more consistent release in the body with ethyl esters. Triglyceride forms will lead to higher peak plasma levels, but drop off more sharply. This could also account for why it seems like they are more bioavailable. They have a more immediate rise in plasma levels compared to ethyl ester forms. Some studies don't even really show a difference between the forms, or only show minor differences.
Five normolipemic subjects received three test meals containing 28 g n-3 (omega-3) fatty acids provided as 1) triglycerides, 2) ethyl esters, and 3) ethyl esters + 12 g olive oil. The control meal contained olive oil. When equivalent amounts of fat were given, the increase in chylomicron and plasma triglycerides was similar; n-3 fatty acid contents were also similar after n-3 fatty acid intake as ethyl esters or triglycerides. Ethyl esters alone were well absorbed and produced similar n-3 fatty acid responses in plasma triglycerides and chylomicrons. At 24 h after the n-3 fatty acid-containing meals, the fatty acid plasma concentration of these acids was similar. This study showed that n-3 fatty acids in fish oil given as ethyl esters or triglycerides were equally well absorbed. Eicosapentaenoic and docosahexaenoic acids were also equally absorbed.
Our results show that in spite of differences in the rate of hydrolysis by lipase in vitro, the enteral absorption of EPA and DHA is as least as good from a synthetic ethyl ester highly enriched in EPA and DHA as it is from a natural triacylglycerol containing equivalent amounts of these fatty acids.
Thirty-one healthy normolipaemic men were allocated to receive fish oil concentrate either as EE or TG with equal amounts of EPA (2.2 g and 2.2 g, respectively) and DHA (1.2 g and 1.4 g, respectively) or placebo daily for 7 weeks. Total cholesterol and the triglyceride level were not influenced differently by the two compounds. Repeated measurement ANOVA revealed a difference between TG and EE regarding incorporation of arachidonic acid (P = 0.034) and EPA (P = 0.007) into plasma cholesteryl esters. A discrimination not observed within plasma phospholipids. Both formulas had equal inhibitory effects on collagen-induced platelet aggregation and thromboxane B2 (TxB2) production in whole blood. Fibrinogen decreased 16% in EE (P = 0.034) and 12% in the placebo group (P = 0.11), but variance analysis of delta change during intervention did not indicate differences between groups. It is concluded that TG and EE fish oils are well incorporated into plasma lipids and have similarly beneficial influence one platelet function in men.
So I really don't see any evidence that would suggest using a triglyceride form of fish oil is significantly better than the ethyl ester form. This is especially true once you factor in the price difference between them. Perhaps a combination of ethyl ester and triglyceride forms would be the ideal solution to cover all bases. However, it's really easy to just add some krill oil into your normal fish oil regimen and get even better results, due to the phospholipid bound omega-3s.