[Effects of Alkoxyglycerol] Anti-cancer Therapy? 3 Benefits of Alkoxyglycerol Shark Liver Oil

Hello, I am Jinny, a pharmacist.

Do you remember the shark liver oil that was available in every home in the past? The first nutritional supplement I saw when I was young was shark liver oil. I just remember that the capsule was enormous. Shark liver oil is a nostalgic, nutritional supplement that has been around for such a long time that it is easy to neglect it compared to newer ingredients. In fact, shark liver oil is an ingredient that has been used clinically as an auxiliary treatment and preventive agent for a long time.

Shark liver oil, which has been known to have been consumed by fishermen in Norway and Sweden since ancient times to improve health, began to attract academic attention in 1922 when the presence of a key ingredient, ‘alkoxyglycerol’, was reported. Initially, clinical research was attempted in relation to the treatment of leukemia, and more recently, it is being studied as an adjuvant treatment to prevent radiation disease caused by anticancer therapy.

[Source] Pugliese, P. T., Jordan, K., Cederberg, H., & Brohult, J. (1998). Some biological actions of alkylglycerols from shark liver oil. The Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine, 4(1), 87-99.

Based on these academic research results, Korea's Ministry of Food and Drug Safety also recognizes shark liver oil, which contains more than 18% of the core ingredient alkoxyglycerol, as ‘shark liver oil containing alkoxyglycerol’, a functional raw material for improving immunity.

Today, we will take a look at the representative effects of shark liver oil containing alkoxyglycerol, an ingredient that is greater than you might think, and find out what research results have been obtained to gauge its potential as an adjuvant treatment for leukemia and radiation diseases.

A tumor refers to excessive proliferation of cells with autonomy that escapes the body's regulatory mechanism. It is easy to understand that cells proliferate pathologically to create physiologically meaningless tissue. Myomas, which are relatively easy to recover from, are classified as benign tumors, and cancers and sarcomas, which have a high mortality rate, are classified as malignant tumors.

Therefore, anti-tumor activity is evaluated to have potential in cancer treatment. A 2013 research report, conducted based on existing research results showing that shark liver oil containing alkoxyglycerol can inhibit tumor growth, confirmed an anti-tumor effect due to intake of shark liver oil, and the author presents the conclusion of the study as follows.

Just as red ginseng has been consumed in Korea for hundreds of years before its functions were scientifically identified, it is known that shark liver oil has been consumed for a long time in Scandinavia and other countries for the purpose of healing wounds and improving health. As the various benefits of consuming shark liver oil containing alkoxyglycerol have been scientifically identified, the benefits related to ‘wound healing’ have also been scientifically explored.

A paper published in Marine Drugs in 2014 conducted a human trial to determine whether consuming shark liver oil could affect recovery in elderly people (whose bodies have very poor recovery ability) undergoing surgical procedures (severe levels of trauma). This study confirmed that the incidence of postoperative complications was significantly reduced in the shark liver oil treatment group.

Including the studies introduced earlier, it has been found that the anti-tumor benefits and complication prevention benefits of shark liver oil containing alkoxyglycerol occur through an immunity-enhancing mechanism. It has been found that consumption of shark liver oil containing alkoxyglycerol increases lymphocytes and white blood cells, such as T cells and neutrophils, which play a major role in cellular immunity.

However, since most studies were conducted in test tubes or on patients, research was also conducted on whether these benefits were the same in ‘healthy people’. In 2010, the results of a human application test of shark liver oil on healthy adults were reported to the academic world. This study confirmed that the immune indicators of healthy adults improved with the consumption of shark liver oil.

Today, we learned about shark liver oil, an ingredient that has various benefits ranging from immunity enhancement to anti-tumor, and has been suggested for daily consumption in many studies as no side effects have been reported. However, when consuming it, as the main variable controlled in research reports is ‘alkoxyglycerol’, it would be more beneficial to choose shark liver oil whose alkoxyglycerol content has been confirmed by the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety.

I hope you have a healthy day both physically and mentally. This was Jinny.