MaxSimil and Vitamin K2: Determining Their Bioavailability

The benefits of a diet enriched with omega-3 fatty acids are multiple and confirmed by several clinical studies. Supplementation with vitamin K, a fat-soluble vitamin, can increase or maintain bone density in postmenopausal women and reduce the risk of fracture. In addition, some studies show that vitamin K may promote the absorption of omega-3 fatty acids. Fish oil, rich in omega-3, is one of the world's favorite forms of omega-3 supplements. However, many people suffer from gastrointestinal discomfort when ingesting fish oil capsules. To minimize these discomforts and improve plasmatic omega-3 bioavailability, Neptune Wellness Solutions has developed a patented formulation of fish oil called MaxSimil®, where omega-3s are in the monoglyceride (MAG) form, a predigested omega-3 form. This formulation has been tested in humans in a double-blind controlled-randomized pharmacokinetic (PK) pilot study with crossover design. PK is defined as a monitoring of omega-3 levels in the blood by frequent blood sampling over a period of 24 hours following the ingestion of a single dose of omega-3. The results obtained showed that MaxSimil® omega-3s are 3 times more absorbed in the blood than the comparison formulation, a source of omega-3 in the ethyl ester (EE) form. Although this first study confirms a greater bioavailability of MaxSimil®, a complementary PK study is necessary to confirm these results and to correct an important methodological bias. In fact, the pilot study did not include a comparator group where omega-3s were in the triglyceride (TG) form, the most widely omega-3 form currently consumed, but rather use an EE form, which have lower bioavailability than TG form. This may therefore have biased the study from the point of view of the comparator and thus give the impression that the comparator had been deliberately chosen to be less bioavailable than the MaxSimil®. In order to confirm the superiority of MaxSimil® (omega-3 MAG form), both in terms of bioavailabili