fermented cod liver oil -

August 4, 2016

The Weston A. Price Foundation Vindicated Kaayla Daniel in the Fermented Cod Liver Oil Controversy

Last year brought us cod liver oil-gate: we learned that fermented cod liver oil, the gold standard of healthy supplementation for families everywhere, was a fraud. I told you about why our family stopped taking it and what we take instead.

After Dr. Kaayla Daniel, then vice president of the Weston A. Price Foundation (WAPF), conducted independent studies of Green Pasture fermented cod liver oil, she published a report, detailing that not only was the fermented cod liver oil rancid, but it lacked the vitamin content that was being promoted.

The ensuing controversy left die-hard fermented cod liver oil fans grasping for the truth, and wondering what they should do next. Dr. Daniel was accused of lying and profiteering, and was, ultimately, fired from the foundation.

So why was Dr. Daniel willing to put her reputation on the line, losing her job, and creating enemies everywhere? I spoke with Dr. Daniel soon after she published her report “Hook, Line, and Stinker” and she told me, “I’m a mom, and that’s why I did this.”

Daniel had received complaints from many parents stating their children were having poor reactions to the fermented cod liver oil, which prompted her to investigate the health claims of the product. When she brought her concerns to WAPF, however, she was stonewalled, and the foundation refused to listen to her concerns or conduct independent testing on the fermented cod liver oil, instead relying on the reports from the company who manufactured the oil (Green Pasture).

In fact, WAPF had never independently tested any cod liver oils prior to 2015. Sally Fallon, president of WAPF says, “We have never tested products for endorsement, only looked at the ingredient list to see whether they fit into our guidelines. However, for the important product of cod liver oil, because of this controversy, I will now be recommending to the board that we develop a protocol for testing all brands for vitamin levels and markers of rancidity before we approve them.” (source, emphasis mine)

The only test results WAPF used to proclaim fermented cod liver oil contained high vitamin levels were the results posted on the Green Pasture website. These results showed that, in addition to very high vitamin levels, the bulk of the vitamin D was in the form of D2, a plant-based vitamin D found in mushrooms, and it contained very low levels of D3. Fish oils and cod liver oil do not contain plant-based vitamin D2, but animal-based D3.

Following the WAPF’s refusal to test fermented cod liver oil, Dr. Daniel decided to take matters into her own hands. That’s when things got interesting.

Dr. Daniel tests fermented cod liver oil

Dr. Daniel went underground, securing independent funding and paying an independent lab to test the oil. Though she was concerned about the oil, the results were worse than she anticipated: the oil had markers indicating rancidity, and the vitamin content was nowhere near what had been previously reported. (source)

Back in 2009, Green Pasture reported the vitamin content of their fermented cod liver oil was as follows: 9,500 IU vitamin A/ tsp and 1,950 IU vitamin D/ tsp. More recent testing has shown these numbers may be grossly inflated. These numbers are more than double the vitamin A and triple the vitamin D levels found in raw, extra virgin cod liver oil, another top-rated cod liver oil promoted by WAPF, which contains 3,500 to 4,500 IU/tsp of vitamin A and 350 to 450 IU/tsp of vitamin D.

Even if the fermentation process somehow increases the vitamin levels in fermented cod liver oil, research points to a lack of bioavailable vitamins in appropriate ratios.

WAPF tests fermented cod liver oil

In November of 2015, WAPF finally tested fermented cod liver oil. They used two different labs, Covance and UBE Labs. The Covance test results were in the same ball park as Dr. Daniel’s test results (only lower). According to Covance, fermented cod liver oil contained 3,125 IU/teaspoon of vitamin A and only 59 IU/teaspoon of vitamin D3. (source)

This figure is nowhere near the vitamin D2value shown by UBE, which fits with Green Pasture’s original claim of a range of 1,500-5,000 IU/tsp.

The Weston A. Price Foundation’s own testing vindicated Dr. Kaayla Daniel and no one noticed. We heard crickets.

The test results from UBE Labs show that total vitamin A was still in the same range at 3,445 IU/teaspoon but the vitamin D was 1,645 IU/teaspoon, and all in the form of D2. (Note that UBE is the lab Green Pasture relied on for their original testing and subsequent vitamin content claims).

Interestingly, a report on vitamin D levels showing testing done on cod liver oil that has been “molecularly distilled with no added vitamins” (think refined, grocery-store cod liver oil), “unheated” cod liver oil (think extra virgin cod liver oil), and “fermented” cod liver oil (Green Pasture) displayed on the WAPF’s Web site is missing the values for vitamin D3 for the fermented cod liver oil. (Figure 4.) However, if you view the results of the testing done by Covance Lab, you will see that it actually shows a value of 59 IU/tsp. (source)

While WAPF continues to promote fermented cod liver oil as the best type of cod liver oil available, Sally Fallon says, “In general, results from UBE were considerably higher than those for Covance… it is likely that the form of vitamin D identified as D2 by UBE labs is another, as yet unidentified, form of vitamin D. UBE Labs says that they do a very thorough job of releasing or extracting the vitamin D, and that is why they get high results. Unfortunately, they will not share their methodology with us, so we (WAPF) have not published any of their results in our journal.” (source 1, 2)

WAPF will not publish UBE’s results in their journal, yet these are still the results they use to promote exorbitantly high vitamin levels in fermented cod liver oil. Note that Green Pasture pulled the test results from their website a year ago and post no vitamin A and D levels on their bottle labels.

Mystery D

Additionally, while the foundation no longer believes that fermented cod liver oil contains D2, they continue to rely on these high vitamin D levels based on the idea that there is a “mystery” vitamin D that is being detected. If this “mystery” D is really the vitamin D we should be after, why all the charades? Why not just come clean and be up front about the fact that fermented cod liver oil has no appreciable levels of vitamin D3, the type of vitamin D one would expect to find in cod liver oil?

To date, Fallon states “…the forms of D in cod liver oil are not D2 but other metabolites. We hope to solve this mystery with further research.” She goes on to say that there are “hundreds of vitamin D metabolites” so we are to accept that it isn’t important which type of vitamin D is present, just that it’s there. (source)

The reason most of us take cod liver oil is to obtain vitamin D3, the same form of vitamin D that our bodies make when our skin is exposed to sunlight. I’m not interested in a mystery vitamin D, just vitamin D3, which is strangely absent in fermented cod liver oil.

A to D ratio

The problem with assuming that fermented cod liver oil is chock-full of vitamin D, is that it is also chock-full of vitamin A, which can easily become toxic in the wrong ratio. To keep vitamin A in check, it needs to be combined with vitamin D3 at a ratio of approximately 10:1 (ten times more vitamin A than vitamin D3). According to the Covance lab test of fermented cod liver oil, the ratio of A:D is approximately 53:1 which is much higher than the 5:1 ratio for fermented cod liver oil stated on the foundation website (and much higher than the 10:1 ratio that is expected in cod liver oil).

The foundation states, “It is important to AVOID cod liver oil that contains low levels of vitamin D in relationship to vitamin A. The ratio of D to A should be AT LEAST 1 to 10.” The foundation recommends that the ratio of A to D should not be greater than 10:1 (for every one unit of vitamin D there should be no more than 10 units of vitamin A). (source)

Fermented cod liver oil and vitamin D deficiency

If fermented cod liver oil really does contain all this fabulous vitamin D (whatever type it may be), why are so many users (myself included) still vitamin D deficient?

As I wrote about last year, blood tests showed that both my son and I were vitamin D deficient, after years of faithfully taking fermented cod liver oil. I was flabbergasted. Not only had I spent a small fortune on this oil that was supposed to bolster my immune system and keep me healthy, but I was suffering from the very ailments it was supposed to alleviate and prevent: vitamin D deficiency and poor immune function. My son had the same problems.

It turns out, I wasn’t alone, and Sally Fallon admits that others have reported similar problems. She says, “Obviously the product does not have the same effect on all people. Again, this is an interesting question and one that we hope to look into.” (source)

Fallon also notes, “This does not mean we do not recommend that some individuals have their vitamin D levels tested. Such testing can be very useful in determining vitamin D status and the effectiveness of cod liver oil or vitamin D supplements.” (source)

If we’re taking cod liver oil that contains 1,645 IU/tsp of vitamin D, how the heck are we deficient?

The simple answer: fermented cod liver oil cannot possibly contain such high levels of vitamin D. Whether or not it contains vitamin D2 or some other, unnamed D vitamin, it is clear that fermented cod liver oil is lacking vitamin D3, the accepted form of vitamin D that strengthens the immune system and raises blood levels of vitamin D.

Indeed, one study concludes, “In humans, vitamin D3 is more effective than vitamin D2 at raising serum 25(OH)D concentrations.” (source)

Did you buy into fermented cod liver oil, hook, line, and stinker?

I did. And, once I learned the truth, our family stopped taking it. We now rely on extra-virgin cod liver oil, a choice I feel good about, and another that the WAPF endorses.

I’m not sure why the WAPF has not been more transparent about this matter, but as a mom who has worked hard to heal a very sensitive child, I am very careful about what I give my family, and when there is this much misinformation and controversy surrounding a product, I simply cannot trust it.

Please share to help clear up some of the misinformation surrounding fermented cod liver oil.

August 31, 2015

Why We Stopped Taking the Butter Oil Fermented Cod Liver Oil Blend

As a mom fighting for my family’s health, I want to share what I’ve learned over the past weeks about fermented cod liver oil, and why we will never take it again. Dr. Kaayla Daniel’s study was much needed, so I am thankful she went through the trouble. And let’s be clear, it was a lot of trouble.

In Hot Water

So, if this report caused so much trouble, why would Dr. Daniel put her reputation and career on the line in order to make her findings public? When I spoke with her recently, she simply said “I’m a mom, too, and that’s why I did this.” This doesn’t sound like someone who is in it for greed or fame. No, let’s consider who has something to gain… and something to lose in this situation:

Dr. Daniel, currently VP of the Weston A. Price Foundation (as of August 2015), became concerned when hundreds of moms contacted her with doubts about the fermented cod liver oil. Their kids were breaking out in hives and having other reactions. When Daniel took these concerns to the WAPF, as she detailed in her report, she was told to leave the science to the scientists and drop it. But, thankfully, she continued digging. Using a number of different labs, she confirmed what many feared: fermented cod liver oil was not only NOT fermented, but it was just plain rancid.

Dr. Daniel herself does not have monetary connections to any cod liver oil companies. However, the WAPF, and those heading it, do. The foundation has praised and pushed Green Pasture products for years, even going so far as to tell users to take copious amounts, which we now understand would never have been recommended by Dr. Price himself. I, like other self-respecting “crunchy,” natural moms bought in and have spent hundreds, if not thousands, on this fermented cod liver oil. After all, Dr. Daniel told me, “Everybody has been told to give it to their kids; that’s what you do if you’re a good mom.”

Why We Stopped Taking It

It was a little while back that I began to hear about the problems with fermented cod liver oil… was it rancid? Oxidized? Did it cause inflammation? Because I lacked an understanding of these concerns, and because I had believed for so long that this was a good product, necessary for my family’s health, I ignored the questions and placed another order. After all, thousands of people take this cod liver oil, it is promoted by the Weston A. Price Foundation, and many, many holistic health care professionals recommend it.

I increased my son’s dosage, as directed by our practitioner, to 2 tsp a day (it should be noted that our practitioner does not push a certain brand of cod liver oil). I experimented for a while, giving it to him a few days in a row, then backing the dosage down, as well as skipping it for a few days at a time. I was having a hard time figuring out whether it was helping or hurting, based on his behavior. Finally, I was able to put two and two together and realized that the days he took it, my son had rather crazy behavior. I decided to stop giving it to him for the time being.

Soon, I learned more about it and gained an understanding of its high histamine content, which was confirmed by Dr. Daniel’s study. Because we take Smidge probiotic, which actively reduces histamines, taking the two combined was counterproductive. Another reason to forgo taking the fermented cod liver oil.

Finally, I learned that the fermented cod liver oil is flavored with essential oils. The label merely reads “natural cinnamon flavor,” without revealing where the cinnamon comes from. I am not a fan of internal essential oil usage, so that was strike three. I was not going to give my family a product internally every day that contained essential oils.

The Report

About a week or two after I stopped giving my family the fermented cod liver oil, Dr. Daniel’s report was made public and I, for one, was glad to be ahead of the curve. Now that it was more than just a hunch, I had to let my family and friends, whom I had encouraged to take the fclo, know that it was unsafe and that they should throw it away. Talk about eating crow. I felt (and feel!) terrible that we had all been wasting our money and taking something that wasn’t good for us. Do I feel foolish for giving my kids fermented cod liver oil? No, I feel foolish for feeding my kids sugar and food dye before I knew better. When I gave my kids fclo, I was following the advice of a well-respected health foundation.

Now that the report is out, we know that fermented cod liver oil is:

not really fermented (duh, oil can’t ferment)
not really cod
rancid, putrid, and rotten
bad, stinky stuff (oh wait, your kids already told you that? Mine too.)

I don’t want to rehash the entire report here, because you can read it yourself, but it does confirm what I didn’t want to believe to be true: fermented cod liver oil, the gold standard of healthy supplementation, not only lacks the benefits it’s been purported to carry, but causes damage to health. Indeed, it effected my son’s behavior, and once I took him off of it, persistent symptoms I had been unable to rid him of (tics) began to subside.

The Green Pasture Rebuttal

I still receive emails from Green Pasture, so when I received one a few days after Dr. Daniel’s report came out, detailing their own reports that would serve as a rebuttal, I, of course, read it right away. These two documents show lab testing which proved that rats fed the fclo had higher vitamin A and D levels than those fed other supplements. First of all, this doesn’t tell us much. It is noted that the fermentation method uses “salt, fish broth starter, and livers.” I have no idea what a fish broth starter is, but I’ve definitely never used broth as a starter. If broth sits out too long at my house, you know what happens to it? It spoils.

As for the vitamin levels, I have two notes on that. 1. I was under the impression, because it had been pounded into me for so long, that fclo was a good source of vitamin D, and that I shouldn’t need additional supplementation. Our practitioner told us last spring that this is not the case, and when one is suffering from vitamin D deficiency, additional supplementation is needed. Which brings me to point 2. My son and I, who had been faithfully taking fclo for years, were both very deficient in Vitamin D. Now, we can argue about gut health and absorption, which we are surely working on in our bodies, but if fclo is as good of a source of these vitamins as we’ve been led to believe, how were we still lacking?

What About the “Blacked Out” Lab Names, Hidden Sources of Funding, and Refusal of Facility Tour?

There have been many who want to claim that Dr. Daniel’s report is untrustworthy because she does not disclose the labs she used for the testing. As she details here, this is common practice, as labs charge a great deal more to use their name for publication. Daniel goes on to explain why the funding sources haven’t been clearly identified, stating that many who helped fund the research are associated with the WAPF and don’t want to jeopardize their positions within the foundation. They, like her, wanted the truth, and many thought the research would prove that WAPF’s position on the matter was right all along: that fclo was, in fact, a healthy, fermented product. Many of them were just as shocked as the rest of us. Finally, Daniel says, she refused an all-expense-paid trip to the Green Pasture facility because “Doctors are frequently criticized for ‘educational’ trips paid for by Big Pharma — and for good reason! They learn exactly what the manufacturer wants them to learn, and there is a strong likelihood that their objectivity will be swayed by the hospitality.”

She goes on to say, “Last winter, I told Wetzel [owner of Green Pasture] I could not accept his all-expense paid visit, but would be willing to visit at my own expense. He then informed me that I could come but his lawyer would be present at all times. At that point, I decided not to travel because it would have cost me more than $2000 — $3000 if I brought a needed witness. I needed that money for lab testing. It was also totally obvious that I would see nothing that he did not want me to see. In terms of my ‘education’ about the Green Pasture process, I had already talked to Wetzel in depth on many occasions. And every time, without fail, my specific questions were met with evasive and vague answers, plus a lot of mumbo jumbo along the lines of ‘We know there are thousands of healing molecules in there that science struggles to find.'” [source]

WAPF’s Response

On August 28th, 2015, Sally Fallon Morell posted a response on the Weston A. Price Foundation website entitled “Questions and Answers About Fermented Cod Liver Oil.” The post details why the WAPF did not choose to do the testing that Daniel requested (“the Board felt that the funds were better spent on vitamin testing…”), as well as plenty of scientific jargon detailing testing methods and the validity of the various methods.

As someone who is not a scientist or doctor, I don’t know a lot about the testing methods. This is clearly a hot topic and there are two distinct opinions on the matter, both of which have some scientific data to back up their position. Sounds an awful lot like another science/medicine battle that is popular these days. You believe the science you are inclined to believe. According to Fallon Morell, the testing methods detailed in Daniel’s report are a poor way to test for rancidity, and testing done at her request, and tests published by Green Pasture, show that the oil is not rancid. She goes on to say “…a lot of the discussion on rancidity is a question of semantics.”

She also notes her own consumption of the oil, crediting it with her increased vitamin A, which she attributes better night vision to. She says that her three grandsons, born to mothers who took fclo through their pregnancies, are “in wonderful health,” which she says is proof of the health benefits of the oil. I cannot make any claims or assumptions of her own experience with the Green Pasture products. I do know that fclo, the main supplement I took during my most recent pregnancy, was not sufficient supplementation for my pregnancy, and I found by the end of pregnancy that I needed to add a prenatal multivitamin.

Fallon Morell also claims she can leave her fclo out on her counter, rather than storing it in the refrigerator, and it does not change appearance, taste or smell. This is reminescent of what I have read about pasteurized milk: that it can sit out on the counter indefinitely without going bad because it is a dead food. It is, essentially, already “bad.” If fclo is a living, fermented food, I don’t understand how it can stay fresh on the counter indefinitely (Wetzel says it is shelf stable for four years!). When I ferment food at home, I place it in the refrigerator to stop the fermentation process. If the fclo is, in fact, fermented, I wonder why it can sit at room temperature with no change.

Why Would You?

The fact that Daniel’s testing did show rancidity in the oil, whether Fallon Morell or others think it was an appropriate way to test, is enough to cast doubt on my own faith in the product. I don’t want to depend on “semantics,” I want to be certain about every product and supplement my family uses, and if there is enough reasonable doubt about a product, I’m not going to take any chances because I have other options. Not only are there other cod liver oils on the market, but there are ways to obtain vitamins A and D through diet. Grassfed, raw milk and milk products, liver and other organ meats, green veggies… these are all appropriate ways of obtaining these vitamins.

I know there are still die-hard Green Pasture Supporters. I get it. It’s hard to accept that something you believed for a long time to be true is, in fact, untrue. But, presented with the facts, I beg the question: why would you continue giving this to your family? When there are other options out there? When there are better options out there? It’s just not a risk I’m willing to take. Our families deserve the best, and as I learn and grow, I will always strive to give that to mine.

Make sure you’re signed up for the newsletter so you don’t miss upcoming posts about this topic, including a side by side comparison of cod liver oils!

If you would like to share your story about fermented cod liver oil and how it has affected your family or your children, you can email Dr. Daniel at wholenutritionist@earthlink.net.

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