Contents of eicosapentaenoic acid and docosahexaenoic acid in "Health food" [contained eicosapentaenoic acid, Japan]

A simple method for the determination of eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) in “health food” contained EPA by gas liquid chromatography (GC) was developed. A sample of 100mg was methyl-esterified by the boron trifluoride-methanol (BF3-MeOH) method and the product was extracted with hexane containing triphenyl ethylene as an internal standard. The sample solution was determined by GC on a 10% Silar 10C column. Recoveries of EPA and DHA added to oils were in the range of 98.8-107% and 98.8-122%, respectively. The present method was applied to “health food” contained EPA. The results showed thet the quantities of EPA and DHA (mg) per gram of oils and fats of the supplements were 20.3 and 11.4 on average, respectively. Moreover, the fatty acid composition, acid value (AV), peroxide value (POV) and tocopherols (Toc) in the “health food” were investigated. Though the “health food” is easily taken, from the viewpoint of safety, nutritional balance and price, EPA and DHA should be taken in the diet in the form of sardines, mackerels, and so on.