Colour enhancing food

[neutrino]

Waste of money if you are feeding NLS, but feel free to give it a go. Been there, done that, decades ago.

100% agree.

Astaxanthin gets a lot of buzz these days and is already there in quality foods by virtue of krill, shrimp, salmon, algae, or similar ingredients, along with the other color (and health) enhancing nutrients most people don't pay as much attention to.

Food with quality ingredients (not chicken meal) + really clean water + good lighting + tank size, scape, and tankmates that suit your fish + decent genes = good color. And by lighting I don't mean blue-exaggerated lights. Clean water and lights (or bulbs) with peaks at good spots in the spectrum can make your tank and fish look HD.

For example, this (as I understand it) is one of algae species in NLS Algaemax:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7333709/

Haematococcus pluvialis is a well-studied alga with the highest known level of astaxanthin accumulation and thus is widely used as an industrial source for natural astaxanthin production.

 

[Tripping Willow 91]

What brand pellets are these? I did not seem the brand name in your post?

Yer I left it out on purpose so people would judge on the ingredients and not the brand. The brand is new to me, I came across them whilst ordering a new heater, they're called origin aquatic nutrition and their green pellets sound very interesting, they've included a mineral clay in them

Take a look, although I think they only ship to the UK

Origin Aquatic Nutrition

Origin Aquatic Nutrition

originaquatic.com

 

[dogofwar]

Available here and probably lots of places: https://kensfish.com/products/astaxanthin-powder?_pos=1&_sid=e11f8bf66&_ss=r

I've primarily mixed with Repashy but also rolled pellets in it - it definitely works to bring out colors! I've also added spirulina, garlic and other goodies into Rephashy.

You can buy just straight astaxanthin powder or flake and add it to better quality “staple”