Viridian Vegan EPA & DHA Oil Review & Giveaway

I’ve been on the hunt for a vegan EPA/DHA supplement that contains quality ingredients, no ‘nasties’ and, equally importantly, tastes palatable! Well I’m pleased to say that the search is finally over. And here is the winning product…. Viridian Vegan EPA & DHA Oil 💚

In today’s post, I thought I’d share some details about this product, as well as a few words on why my family chooses to take an EPA/DHA supplement. I’m also launching a fantastic giveaway open to UK readers, so be sure to read on.

The long-chain omega-3 fatty acids EPA and DHA are considered to be important for heart and brain health. As Joel Fuhrman states in his book, Super Immunity, we do not need lots of EPA and DHA, but problems may arise when people become deficient in these needed fats. Fuhrman mentions that low EPA and DHA levels have been associated with a range of health issues including heart disease; depression; cancer; anxiety; Alzheimer’s disease; hyperactivity; Attention Deficit Disorder; allergies; autoimmune illnesses; dermatologic disorders and inflammatory bowel disease.

While the human body is able convert the short-chain omega-3 ALA (found in linseed/flaxseed, walnuts, chia seeds, hemp seeds, leafy greens) into EPA and DHA, it’s not known how efficiently the body does this. Studies have shown that people have varying abilities to convert ALA into DHA. I recall reading a study years ago that found that males were generally less efficient at converting ALA into DHA compared to females, so this is something I’ve always borne in mind since Lucien was born.

For ‘nutritional insurance’ (or taking a ‘belts and braces’ approach as I like to call it), health/nutrition experts recommend we consume a direct source of EPA/DHA at least twice a week. For omnivores, this would be fish or fish oil, but the plant-based health/nutrition experts that I follow, including Michael Greger, Joel Fuhrman, Jack Norris and Ginny Messina, recommend taking a marine-algae EPA/DHA supplement, either daily or every 2-3 days. I like their way of thinking. Rather than eating fish (which have eaten the EPA/DHA-rich marine algae), why not cut out the ‘middle fish’ and eat the marine algae direct? It’s more efficient, doesn’t cause suffering, and also avoids the risk of mercury and PCB toxicity associated with fish consumption.

I wanted to heed their advice but, the trouble was, most of the EPA/DHA supplements I’d tried in the past were pretty rank tasting. They came in capsules, which I then had to pierce open and mix into Lucien’s smoothies and yogurts. The aroma reminded me of gone-off fish. Even when I added a small drop of the oil to a smoothie, I could still detect it (though fortunately Lucien was still happy to drink it). The one EPA/DHA supplement I had liked (sold by Solgar in a liquid form with a lemony taste) was sadly discontinued.

I recently searched the web again, in the hope that a new EPA/DHA supplement would have come onto the market. I specifically wanted it in liquid form and nice-tasting (fruity, minty, in fact anything but fishy). I looked on the Viridian website and, lo and behold, I came across their Vegan EPA & DHA oil.

I read the description and started to get very excited indeed. It sounded spot on. It contains just four ingredients…

  • sustainably grown marine algae oil;
  • chia seed oil (from European grown chia seeds);
  • natural orange oil and
  • vitamin E.

The liquid contains the optimal ratio of omegas 3-6-9, and provides 225 mg of EPA and DHA per ml. I contacted Viridian and they kindly offered to send me a sample to trial. The liquid comes in a glass bottle with a dropper, so you can easily squirt it into your smoothies, yogurts, breakfast bowls or direct into your mouth. And it tastes lovely! Rather than spoiling your food, I find it actually enhances its flavour. I love adding a squirt of the oil to plain yogurt, morning oats, porridge, smoothies and chia puddings for a burst of orangey flavour.

I’m so delighted to have found this supplement, and even more pleased that it’s produced by Viridian. I’m a big fan of this company. It’s family-run and has high ethical, environmental and charity credentials. If you’d like to find out more about their work, check out the Philosophy tab on their website.

Viridian supplements are available in the UK from independent health food shops and online. The RRP for the Vegan EPA/DHA 30ml is £20.95. It is a bit pricey but hopefully as demand for the product goes up, they’ll be able to bring down the price in the future. For now, I’m planning for my family of three to each take 1ml of the supplement twice a week. That way, the bottle will last us a month.

Two more Viridian products that I highly rate are their Liquid Vitamin D (Vegan D3) (which we take regularly in the non-summer months) and Balanced Iron Complex (which I take during the ‘time of the month’ to boost my iron levels).

A full list of the supplements we take can be found in this post which I wrote back in 2015. Our diet and supplements have pretty much stayed the same these past few years and we’ve enjoyed great health and bundles of energy. Long may it continue!

GIVEAWAY TIME!

Viridian has kindly offered to give away 3 bottles of their Vegan EPA DHA oil to Bit of the Good Stuff readers ❤️  So that’s one bottle each heading its way to 3 lucky winners! 

To be in with a chance of winning, simply leave a comment under this blog post answering the question featured in the Rafflecopter below. Do make sure you tick the box in the Rafflecopter to register that you have done so.

There are a number of additional ways you can enter in order to increase your chances of winning. You will find these listed in the Rafflecopter. All entries will be verified prior to the winner being selected. This giveaway is open to UK residents aged 18 and over. The closing date is Sunday 11th December at midnight GMT.

After the closing date, three winners will be selected at random and notified by email. The winners will have 48 hours to respond. If they fail to do so, another winner will be selected at random. New to Rafflecopter? Simply click on ‘Use Your Email’ and enter a name and your email address (rest assured it won’t be published anywhere). You can also log in using your Facebook account, if you wish.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Good luck everyone!

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24 thoughts on “Viridian Vegan EPA & DHA Oil Review & Giveaway

  1. I haven’t supplemented before so this is new to me. I knew needed to get something for the whole family, I’ve just been hearing about marine algae so thank you for sharing the blog and giving people the chance to win. I will definitely be buying the oil anyway and will look at the other products xx

  2. I do take an omega 3 supplement already, but in a capsule, not an oil, I imagine this would be good for very small children.

  3. I was given your book for my birthday last July by a very dear friend. I’ve had many recipe books over the years, but I can honestly say that yours is quite special … It’s easy to use, interesting, informative and of course – there are some great recipes. And now, I’ve gifted a copy to a friend who has two young children, and she had been telling me how she would like to eat more veggie food but didn’t know where to start. What an opportunity! I’m sure she and her family will have lots of lovely experiences eating food made from your recipes, Sharon.
    Thank you xxx

    1. Thank you so much Jules for your kind words. It means the world to me to hear how much you’re enjoying the book and finding it useful. I hope your friend enjoys it too! ☺️
      Much love,
      Sharon xx

  4. I had read about these supplements on No Meat Athlete – but hadn’t investigated a UK version. Glad to know it’s available.

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