Remember all those National Geographic specials you’ve seen about tenacious and extreme salmon swimming upstream and battering themselves over rocks seeking ultimate spawning ground?
Well, those muscle-heads of the fish species are part of the reasoning the American Heart Association recommends eating fish (particularly fatty fish) at least two times (two servings) a week.
High in protein and low in fat, fish provide an array of health advantages. According to a 2006 study by the Journal of the American Medical Association, in adults, the death rate from heart disease was 36 percent lower among those who ate fish twice a week compared with those who ate little or no seafood, and according to Harvard School of Public Health, overall mortality was 17 percent lower.
White-fleshed fish, in particular, are lower in fat than any other animal protein. Fatty and oily fish like salmon, mackerel, herring, lake trout, sardines and albacore tuna (some of the most commonly consumed fish) are high in omega-3 fatty acids. Omega-3 fatty acids are “good” fats unlike Omega-6 fats, which are found in red meat. You may have already heard about Omega-3s, as they are readily available in capsule-form alongside fish oil at most health and vitamin retailers.
However, eating fish is both more tasty and cost-conscious. According to the FDA, Omega 3s “help maintain cardiovascular health by playing a role in the regulation of blood clotting and vessel construction, may reduce tissue inflammation and alleviate the symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis,” and “may play a beneficial role in cardiac arrhythmia (irregular heartbeat), reducing depression and halting mental decline in older people.”
The Journal of the American Medical Association reported in their findings also that the benefits of eating “eating even farmed salmon still outweighs any risks imposed by contaminants” including mercury. Thus, don’t worry about mercury unless cautioned by signage posted at area lakes where mercury levels are severely high, hence the posting.
Most commercial fish, including the five most commonly eaten fish or shellfish (shrimp, tuna, salmon, pollock and catfish), are low in mercury.
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