Looking for seafood in a major store can be time consuming. There can be so many choices. In addition to the usual questions of taste and calories, people now want to know - which fish contain omega 3? Another issue that has cropped up the past decade is what ocean pollutants are in the fish and what are safe consumption levels?
Both omega 3 and omega 6 essential fatty acids are a vital part of our immune system. Ideally they should be in a one-to-one ratio. In the Western world, that is unlikely to happen. Omega 6s are part of vegetable oils, processed foods, salad dressings etc. Because of this overload, the typical consumer is saturated with this vital but easily available nutrient.
While we want to know which fish contain omega 3, we also need to know the omega 6 levels in each species. The seafood with the best ratios are salmon, tuna, hoki, mackerel, herring and rainbow trout. Shrimp and oysters are also good. Sardines and anchovies can be high in sodium.
Stay away form the larger predators like sharks or swordfish. Most omega 3s come from the algae at the bottom of the food chain. As you get higher in the chain, the fatty acid content gets higher but so does the level of all the ocean contaminants. Unfortunately, this also affects most of the species that I mentioned earlier.
Another alternative is fish farms. Norway alone has 800 of them. Since the fish are away from their natural food chain they have to rely on the pellets they are fed for nutrients - not natural algae. They may not have as many ocean toxins like mercury, but they have to contend with viruses and parasites that spread rapidly in crowded conditions.
Here are two bits of information.
1] The FDA suggests a maximum of two servings of fish per week.
2] A recent [2010] study of 357 Yup'ik Eskimos, published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, found that high blood levels of fish omega 3 fats corresponded to extremely low cardiovascular and immune system disorders.
The Eskimos may be at risk of mercury poisoning but are very unlikely to have a heart attack, arthritis or clinical depression.
Toxins versus benefits. We seem to between a rock and a hard place. To get anywhere near the levels of fats the Eskimos had, we have to either eat a lot of seafood daily, or get a quality supplement.
The better products can prove their levels of purity and not ask you to just trust them. The question is still which fish contain omega 3? My supplement uses two sources - local catches of hoki and tuna - both swim near New Zealand. I mention this because it is one of the cleanest places on earth and catches are strictly regulated to make sure our grandchildren will enjoy the same benefits.
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 .
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