Here’s our review of the Best DHA Supplement for Pregnancy
Lab Tested. Every Batch. Every Time.
We subject every batch of our products to 3rd party lab testing before they are released to the public. This is done in addition to the testing our suppliers and contract manufacturers undertake.
Does this really matter? Well, in the past we have found batches of product that were not up to specification and stopped them before they went to market! Lab testing really does make a difference!
We wish more dietary supplement companies would do this voluntary self-testing. If any dietary supplement manufacturers are reading this, 3rd party lab testing adds only 1% to production costs and 4-10 days to lead time. If softgels/capsules are sent for lab testing concurrently with bottling/labeling operations it can add zero days to lead time.
There is no excuse not to be accountable. Here are our lab results:
Product: Diet Standards Prenatal DHA
Lot Number: 9357-52563
3rd Party Test Results:
(Note: Links are PDF documents. When you click them, they will likely download and you will have to look in your downloads folder to see them.)
First Sale Date: NOV2022
Expiration Date: JUL2024
Bottle Sizes: 180-Vegan Softgels
Allergen Notes: This product consists of Vegan Softgels made with Seaweed Extract and Algae Oil. The product is Vegetarian, Vegan, and free of all common allergens.
Selling Location: All Bottles from this lot sold at Amazon.com.
Product: Diet Standards Prenatal DHA
Lot Number: 9357-43360
3rd Party Test Results:
(Note: Links are PDF documents. When you click them, they will likely download and you will have to look in your downloads folder to see them.)
First Sale Date: NOV2021
Expiration Date: AUG2023
Bottle Sizes: 180-Vegan Softgels
Allergen Notes: This product consists of Vegan Softgels made with Seaweed Extract and Algae Oil. The product is Vegetarian, Vegan, and free of all common allergens.
Selling Location: All Bottles from this lot sold at Amazon.com.
Product: Diet Standards Prenatal DHA
Lot Number: 9357-35208
3rd Party Test Results:
(Note: Links are PDF documents. When you click them, they will likely download and you will have to look in your downloads folder to see them.)
First Sale Date: FEB2021
Expiration Date: APR2023
Bottle Sizes: 180-Vegan Softgels
Allergen Notes: This product consists of Vegan Softgels made with Seaweed Extract and Algae Oil. The product is Vegetarian, Vegan, and free of all common allergens.
Selling Location: All Bottles from this lot sold at Amazon.com.
Product: Diet Standards Prenatal DHA
Lot Number: E19090
Product Images:
Status: Currently Selling on Amazon
3rd Party Test Results:
(Note: Links are PDF documents. When you click them, they will likely download and you will have to look in your downloads folder to see them.)
Algae Oil Supplier Specifications:
- Allergen Statement
- Certificate of Origin
- Composition
- Statement of Non-GMO
- Product Specifications (NOTE: “Product Specifciations” show maximum values permissible, they are NOT actual values. For example, this document says the product must contain less than 0.1 mercury. But if you look at the actual 3rd party test results, you’ll see the product was actually 0.00 mercury. To see actual test results, please click the links above under “3rd Party Test Results” above.)
First Sale Date: AUG2019
Expiration Date: JUN2021
Bottle Sizes: 180-Vegan Softgels
Allergen Notes: This product consists of Vegan Softgels made with Seaweed Extract and Algae Oil. The product is Vegetarian, Vegan, and free of all common allergens.
Selling Location: All Bottles from this lot sold at Amazon.com.
Product: Diet Standards Prenatal DHA
Lot Number: E18025
Status: Entire lot sold
3rd Party Test Results:
(Note: Links are PDF documents. When you click them, they will likely download and you will have to look in your downloads folder to see them.)
Algae Oil Supplier Specifications:
- Allergen Statement
- Certificate of Origin
- Composition
- Statement of Non-GMO
- Product Specifications (NOTE: “Product Specifciations” show maximum values permissible, they are NOT actual values. For example, this document says the product must contain less than 0.1 mercury. But if you look at the actual 3rd party test results, you’ll see the product was actually 0.00 mercury. To see actual test results, please click the links above under “3rd Party Test Results” above.)
First Sale Date: JUN2018
Final Sale Date: Early 2020
Expiration Date: JUN2020
Bottle Sizes: 180-Vegan Softgels
Allergen Notes: This product consists of Vegan Softgels made with Seaweed Extract and Algae Oil. The product is Vegetarian, Vegan, and free of all common allergens.
Selling Location: All Bottles from this lot sold at Amazon.com.
Product: Diet Standards Prenatal DHA
Lot Number: H17016
Status: Entire lot sold
Test Results: Purity/Potency, Solvents, Heavy Metals, Microbial
(Note: Links are PDF documents. When you click them, they will likely download and you will have to look in your downloads folder to see them.)
First Sale Date: December 2017
Final Sale Date: Currently Selling
Suggested Expiration Date: December 2019
Bottle Sizes: 180-Vegan Softgels and 30-Vegan Softgels
Product Specification Sheets: Algae Oil Allergen Documentation, Algae Oil Specification Sheet, Algae Oil Nutrition Information, Algae Oil Contents, Carrageenan Information (Supplier names and branded ingredient names are blanked out so competitors cannot counterfeit our formula)
Allergen Notes: This product consists of Vegan Softgels made with Seaweed Extract and Algae Oil. The information sheets above show that the product is Vegetarian and Vegan. The product is free of Gluten, Milk, and many other common allergens. If you have an allergy, please read through the above allergen documents carefully before taking this product.
Notes: This batch changed from plastic bottles to glass bottles. A white hexagon-shaped box is also included in product packaging. Due to customer demand, the 90-count size was eliminated and replaced with the 180-count size used in previous batches.
Product: AminoHD1000 BCAA
Lot Number: 10208
Lot Number Location: Lot number printed on bottom of bottle
Status: Entire lot sold
Test Results: Purity/Potency, Solvents, Heavy Metals, Microbial
(Note: Links are PDF documents. When you click them, they will likely download and you will have to look in your downloads folder to see them.)
First Sale Date: April 2016
Final Sale Date: Still Selling
Expiration Date: 03/31/2019
Bottle Size: 400 vegetarian capsules
Product Images: Bottom of Bottle, Bottle Height, Bottle Width/Weight
Notes: I was a bit confused about the Microbial Test result for the analyte labeled “Enrichment” and got this response from Karine Aylozyan, the QA/Technical Director at Micro Quality Labs: “Thanks for the email. I hope you had a nice weekend. The product is in spec. The enrichment is tested to determine low level contamination that might be in the batch. In this case, we are seeing a gram positive bacilli which is usually associated with natural ingredients. Your total plate count is <10cfu/gm so there isn’t any concern. However, as the enrichment testing is performed for OTC products and not is not required for the dietary world, we will remove and resend to you attention to avoid any confusion from other parties that might not understand the results.” Basically, the lab had run an extra test that was not needed for dietary supplements. It came back within specification. I did not follow up and post the revised report since the posted report above is more detailed than the revised version they would have sent me.
Product: Diet Standards Prenatal DHA
Lot Number: L16010
Status: Entire lot sold
Test Results: Purity/Potency, Solvents, Heavy Metals, Microbial
(Note: Links are PDF documents. When you click them, they will likely download and you will have to look in your downloads folder to see them.)
First Sale Date: February 2017
Final Sale Date: December 2017
Suggested Expiration Date: February 2019
Bottle Sizes: 90-Vegetarian Softgels (“30-Day Supply”) and 30-Vegetarian Softgels (“10-Day Supply”)
Product Specification Sheets: Algae Oil Allergen Documentation, Algae Oil Specification Sheet, Algae Oil Nutrition Information, Algae Oil Contents, Carrageenan Information (Supplier names and branded ingredient names are blanked out so competitors cannot counterfeit our formula)
Allergen Notes: This product consists of Vegetarian Softgels made with Carrageenan (a type of seaweed) and Algae Oil. The information sheets above show that the product is Vegetarian and Vegan. The product is free of Gluten, Milk, and many other common allergens. If you have an allergy, please read through the above allergen documents carefully before taking this product.
Notes: Previous lot numbers included Flaxseed Oil, had larger softgels, and included a 180-count bottle size. Many of our customers requested easier-to-swallow softgels, so this batch has softgels that are half the size of the original version. Flaxseed Oil has been dropped from the formulation for this batch and future batches. Flaxseed Oil is a terrific source of alpha-Linolenic acid (ALA), which is great for overall health but not necessary for a healthy pregnancy. There are enough high-volume manufacturers of Flaxseed Oil (softgels and liquid oil) that it’s cheaper for our customers to buy a separate flaxseed oil than have us add it to our existing formulation. We recommend 2 grams of Flaxseed Oil daily as part of a healthy supplementation regimen. Several food products are also high in ALA, including Canola Oil, Soybean Oil, and Whole or Ground Flaxseeds.
Product: Diet Standards Prenatal DHA
Lot Number: E16050
Status: Entire lot sold
Test Results: Purity/Potency, Solvents, Heavy Metals, Microbial
(Note: Links are PDF documents. When you click them, they will likely download and you will have to look in your downloads folder to see them.)
First Sale Date: August 2016
Final Sale Date: February 2017
Expiration Date: August 2018
Bottle Size: 180 vegetarian softgels
Product Images: Bottom of Bottle, Bottle Height, Bottle Width, Bottle Weight
Product Specification Sheets: Algae Oil Allergen Documentation, Algae Oil Specification Sheet, Flaxseed Oil Allergen Documentation, Flaxseed Oil Certificate of Analysis (Supplier names and any branded ingredient names are blanked out so competitors cannot counterfeit the formula)
Allergen Notes: This product consists of Vegetarian Softgels made with Carrageenan (a type of seaweed), Algae Oil, and Flaxseed Oil. The information sheets above show that the product is Vegetarian and Vegan. The product is free of Gluten, Milk, and many other common allergens. If you have an allergy, please read through the above allergen documents carefully before taking this product.
Notes: You don’t have to worry about heavy metals or contaminants in Diet Standards Prenatal DHA. It less of these compounds than the food you eat every day. A small (85 gram) serving of meat can legally contain 1,069 times as much arsenic as this product. Arsenic Levels in this supplement are a very low 0.053 ppm. FDA Reports on Arsenic levels shows 0.066 ppm to 0.127 ppm for various rice products. The FDA allowable levels of arsenic are 0.500-2.000 ppm in meat products. This product is similar levels of arsenic as an organic rice snack. Since this product is taken at a much smaller doses than the amount found in most foods, the arsenic levels are even lower. 3 grams of this DHA supplement would yield 0.159 micrograms of arsenic where a typical 85 gram meat serving could legally yield as much as 170.000 micrograms of arsenic (1,069 times as much!). You would need to take 3,571 softgels of this product in a single day just to reach the recommended upper limit of lead intake. Lead levels in this supplement are a trace level of 0.007 ppm. The maximum allowable upper limit for lead intake in pregnant women is 25 micrograms/day. At the recommended intake of 3 grams per day this supplement would yield only 0.021 micrograms/day of lead, or just 0.084% of the daily upper limit.
Product: AminoHD1000 BCAA
Lot Number: 20513
Lot Number Location: Lot number printed on bottom of bottle
Status: Entire lot sold
Test Results: Purity/Potency, Solvents, Heavy Metals, Microbial
(Note: Links are PDF documents. When you click them, they will likely download and you will have to look in your downloads folder to see them.)
Final Sale Date: Late March 2016
Bottle Size: 450 vegetarian capsules
Product: AminoHD1000 BCAA
Lot Number: 0514154
Lot Number Location: Lot number printed on bottom of bottle
Status: Entire lot sold
Test Results: Purity/Potency, Solvents, Heavy Metals, Microbial
(Note: Links are PDF documents. When you click them, they will likely download and you will have to look in your downloads folder to see them.)
Final Sale Date: Late November 2015
Expiration Date: 01/2016
Bottle Size: 450 vegetarian capsules
Product Images: Bottom of Bottle