Abstract
The aim of this study was to investigate the eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) content found in fish oil supplements and formula milks for young children sold in Europe, the Middle East, and North Africa's local markets and online stores. To allow comparison of fish oil supplements and formula milks, information about the EPA and DHA content was collected from the nutrition panel of each product. A total of 79 fish oil supplements and 70 formula milks were studied. Out of the 32 fish oil supplements in local markets 12 products (37.5%) and of the 47 fish oil supplements in Amazon online stores 12 products (25.5%) contained more EPA than DHA. The highest DHA:EPA ratio for fish oil supplements was 4.6. The percentage of Recommended Dietary Intake for DHA, based on 250 mg daily, ranged from 3.2% to 558% for the fish oil supplements, and the range of 0.4% to 25.2% was found for the formula milks. Fish oil supplements provided high daily dose of DHA, which was significantly higher than that provided by the formula milks.