It is difficult to find a health food store that does not offer several fish oil supplements with the name salmon omega3 on it. They are pushing salmon as an omega 3 source, but why? Aren’t there any other species that are nutritionally just as good? What about other concerns like ocean contaminants or overfishing?
1] The reason people are curious about salmon omega3 is the omega3 content in them. The two tied to all the health benefits are called DHA and EPA. This dynamic duo has been endorsed by the FDA, American Heart Association, Alzheimer's Foundation, American Eye Institute and numerous other organizations. I mention all these U.S. organizations because a recent Harvard study of data from the US National Health Center for Health Statistics has omega3 deficiencies as the sixth biggest killer in the country. Tobacco, high blood pressure and obesity were first, second and third.
2] Salmon are anadromous. This means that they spawn in fresh water but spend most of their lives at sea. Atlantic and North Pacific species are world travelers. They will navigate thousands of ocean miles before returning to fresh water in order to spawn.
Consumers are rightly concerned about the pollutants found in wild salmon. They are predatory fish and absorb all the mercury or other heavy metal toxins up and down the food chain. Because they swim such far distances there is no one area that is safe. For instance I have seen salmon omega3 supplements that promote themselves as pure because they are Alaskan or Norwegian or Icelandic. This is misleading. An Alaskan Sockeye or North Atlantic species could spend as much time in more polluted waters than their spawning grounds.
3] Farmed fish have become very popular the past ten years or so. There are over 800 farms in Norway alone. This is a response to the skyrocketing demand for seafood. Unfortunately, farmed species have their own issues. The crowded conditions are breeding grounds for viruses and parasites. The antibiotics and pesticides used to fight these problems do not help.
Many of the farms use pellets and various food concoctions to feed the fish. This means that there will be little or no omega3 content in them.
4] The FDA wants us to keep our general seafood consumption to twice a week. A few years ago, a research study out of the University of Indiana on fish toxins thought twice a month would be better.
What is the solution?
EPA and DHA are the same no matter what natural source is used. Salmon omega 3 is just one choice. It could be...tuna, mackerel, or shark... omega3. I use a supplement sourced from hoki and tuna, both of which live in the Southern Ocean. This isolated area is by New Zealand. I mention the country because the harvest is carefully monitored to make sure there will be plenty of fish for future generations.
My website can provide more information.
Author Resource:
Get my free five-part mini course on the benefits of omega 3, including critical information on why you should take omega3 fish oil .
To sign up for the course and get more tips on the importance of omega 3, visit my website:
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