What Makes Salmon Pink, and Other Astaxanthin Facts

Aloha! I hope everyone is having a happy weekend!

While I wish I was posting from the picture above, I’m actually writing today about a product that is made there, on the sunny coast of Kona on the Big Island of Hawaii. As you guys know, I love Hawaii, I spent three summers there, one interning in Honolulu, and it is my favorite place on Earth. The air and land are so clean, the food is so fresh and flavorful, everything just feels alive.

I was recently contacted through FitFluential about the chance to review Nutrex-Hawaii supplements and I was so excited for the opportunity. Having studied Hawaii in my geology class last semester, I know the islands were created from the lava flows of the volcanoes. The Big Island is essentially one big active volcano, which makes it an incredibly fertile place for growing crops. And the water around Hawaii is considered a “BioSecure Zone” that prohibits the use of harmful pesticides and genetically modified organisms in the water. I feel like as a company Nutrex-Hawaii really couldn’t ask for a better place to harvest nutrients.

I received 50 12mg gel caps of BioAstin otherwise known as Astaxanthin. Before looking into the company I had never heard of Astaxanthin before. I knew that if I was going to be putting something into my body and talking about it with all of you I really wanted to do my research. I currently don’t have any medical problems and I want to keep it that way. I think supplements can be incredibly helpful, but because the FDA does not regulate them in the same way as medications or food, I think personal research is vital. I also want to add a caveat that I am not a nutritionist. I study marketing in college, not a subject related to health in any way. I am just one girl, trying to find out the best way to feed my body to live a long and healthy life. Before making any big changes to your diet I would absolutely recommend doing your own research and talking to your doctor about what would work best for you.

I have been looking into taking a supplement for a while now. As a vegetarian I feel like I eat a balanced diet and am not lacking in meeting my nutritional needs. There is  one food I am not eating that I see incredible value in though, and that is salmon. Even when I ate meat I never liked the taste of fish and never ate it. I just wasn’t exposed to it a lot growing up. It seems like everyone and their doctor recommends eating salmon for the Omega-3’s and antioxidants. Quite honestly if I liked the taste of salmon I would probably be a pescatarian because it is so good for you.

When researching Astaxanthin I found out that it is the carotenoid responsible for salmon and flamingos having the color that they do. Salmon are born white but turn that pinkish orange color because of the Haematococcus pluvialis that they eat. Haematococcus pluvialis is the richest source of natural astaxanthin, and while it can also be found in yeast or GMO’s I would only really feel comfortable trying the natural option. Astaxanthin is the most powerful antioxidant currently known to be in existence. It is 550 times stronger than Vitamin E and is 11 times stronger than Beta Carotene. It is also the only lipid soluble antioxidant that can be absorbed by both your eyes and your brain as well as the rest of your body.

There has been evidence that Astaxanthin can potentially reduce blood pressure, help prevent heart disease, lower cholesterol, protect the lens of the eye against cataracts, protect the stomach against ulcers, and reduce the risk of macular degeneration. There is not a lot of conclusive evidence out there at the moment, because Beta Carotene and Vitamin E have been the focus of most of the antioxidant studies. What I found really awesome is research has proven that there is no toxicity levels associated with Astaxanthin. I poured through articles and websites to make sure there were no known risks associated with taking Astaxanthin.While I always want to improve my health I don’t want to be an idiot and give myself a problem that I wouldn’t have had otherwise. Rats were fed obscene amounts without any side effects and humans were taking up to 16mg a day without any problems.  Unlike Vitamin A there has been no reported side effects or illnesses while taking Astaxanthin, regardless of the dosage.

From what I found online, including an episode of Dr. Oz, the recommended dosage for an average person without any medical problems is 2-10mg daily. 12mg is recommended for athletes or those suffering illnesses they are looking to treat. While I exercise I would not consider myself an athlete so the 12mg is probably more than I need. The 4mg tablets Nutrex-Hawaii sells would probably be the perfect amount for me. Thankfully there is no harm in taking 12 mg, so I took my first BioAstin pill this morning with eggs. The pill is fat soluble so taking it with a healthy fat will help increase absorption. If I really like them and continue to take them on a daily basis I will definitely trade out my 12mg for the 4mg just because its the recommended dosage for me.

If you’d like to learn more about BioAstin and the company that makes it I’d love for you to join me and other FitFluentials in the Twitter chat on Monday, June 4 at 8PM CST.  We’ll be using the hashtag #SuperNutrients.

Question of the Day: Have you ever tried Astaxanthin? What supplements do you take and why?

FitFluential LLC compensated me for this campaign. All opinions are my own.