The vital role of seafood in daily life.
P. Dhivakar. BFSc
The importance of a balanced diet for better growth and immunity is essential in today’s world. In that area, seafood is playing a crucial role to fulfill the nutritional requirements for humans. These may vary at different life stages, but the need is constant.
Seafood, especially fish provides a high-quality protein and is filled with omega-3 fatty acids, vitamins such as D, B2 and also provides calcium and phosphorus.
Apart from that, it provides a great source of minerals such as iron, zinc, iodine, magnesium and potassium to improve lives.
The American Heart Association recommends eating fish at least two times per week as a part of a healthy diet. It helps to lower blood pressure and helps reduce the risk of a heart attack or stroke.
Studies from Martinette T.streppel, 2008 suggests that the consumption of fatty fish lowered sudden coronary death risk. fatty fish like salmon, mackerel, sardines and tuna are an excellent choice to eat omega-3-fatty acids rich food.
Do you know what omega-3 really does?
Omega-3 increases and improves the brain function and reduces inflammation, lowering blood pressure. Along with that, it also plays an important role in the development of structural components in the body. Researchers hypothesized that the regular intake of omega-3 reduces the chance of cancer due to the presence of anti-inflammatory compounds. A lot of benefits accrue by consuming seafood.
Additionally, omega-3 helps to reduce cardiovascular disease (CVD) and its risk factors, infant health and neural development, cancer prevention, Alzheimer's disease, dementia and cognitive function.
The benefits of consuming seafoods also provide valuable advantages to lead a healthy and happy life. Consumption of omega-3 reduces the risk of depression, inflammatory bowel disease, hyperactivity disorder, childhood allergies and more.
There are many different varieties and types of seafood available to eat. Most of them come from the wild as well as farmed, both are really good for you. Species from wild and farmed generally show little variation in their nutritional composition.
Top Seafood varieties include fish (like salmon, trout, tuna, cod), crustaceans (like shrimp, lobster, crab), molluscs (like oysters, clams, mussels), and cephalopods (like squid, octopus) all of which are well known for their nutritious contents. There are many species to choose from – sea water or fresh water, wild harvested or farmed, all offer different values in flavour and taste.
By considering the importance of seafood, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) listed (https://fdc.nal.usda.gov/)the source of Alpha-linolenic acid (ALA), Eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) all part of Omega-3 long chain fatty acid groups.
*It does not specifically mention whether it is farmed or wild caught.
| Food | Grams per serving | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| ALA | DHA | EPA | |
| Salmon, Atlantic, farmed, cooked, 3 ounces | 1.24 | 0.59 | |
| Salmon, Atlantic, wild, cooked, 3 ounces | 1.22 | 0.35 | |
| Herring, Atlantic, cooked, 3 ounces* | 0.94 | 0.77 | |
| Sardines, canned in tomato sauce, drained, 3 ounces* | 0.74 | 0.45 | |
| Mackerel, Atlantic, cooked, 3 ounces* | 0.59 | 0.43 | |
| Salmon, pink, canned, drained, 3 ounces* | 0.04 | 0.63 | 0.28 |
| Trout, rainbow, wild, cooked, 3 ounces | 0.44 | 0.4 | |
| Oysters, eastern, wild, cooked, 3 ounces | 0.14 | 0.23 | 0.3 |
| Sea bass, cooked, 3 ounces* | 0.47 | 0.18 | |
| Shrimp, cooked, 3 ounces* | 0.12 | 0.12 | |
| Lobster, cooked, 3 ounces* | 0.04 | 0.07 | 0.1 |
| Tuna, light, canned in water, drained, 3 ounces* | 0.17 | 0.02 | |
| Tilapia, cooked, 3 ounces* | 0.04 | 0.11 | |
| Scallops, cooked, 3 ounces* | 0.09 | 0.06 | |
| Cod, Pacific, cooked, 3 ounces* | 0.1 | 0.04 | |
| Tuna, yellowfin, cooked 3 ounces* | 0.09 | 0.01 | |
Hence the consumption of seafood is both essential and cost-effective.
The Seafood Consumers Association supports the consumption of seafood by promoting all varieties for a sustainable diet. All global cuisines have seafood of some description on the table – try them, share the recipes with us and enjoy the healthy lifestyle seafood offers.
Eating seafood will never let you down; it will lift your spirits!