Top Health Benefits of Eating Fatty Fish
You might have heard that incorporating a serving or two of fatty/ oily fish per week is beneficial for you, but why is that? You might have also heard of “Omega 3’s” and that they are good for your brain. But how do they link to fish and what other good things can they do for us?
Thats what we will be talking about today and really unpacking what makes these fatty fish so good for us to eat.
I hope you enjoy this one :)
WHAT ARE FATTY FISH EXACTLY?
So what exactly do I mean when I say “fatty fish”?
Fatty fish a certain types of fish which are considered as such for their high omega 3 fatty acid content apart from their rich concentration of other vital nutrients (protein, iodine and vitamin D) . We will talk more about this later, but it is important to note that omega 3’s are essential for us to obtain through food as our body can not make them itself.
Most common examples of fatty fish:
Albacore tuna
Farmed or wild salmon
Herring
Cod
Anchovies
Sardines
Mackerel
ALL ABOUT OMEGA 3’s
Omega-3 fatty acids are a type of unsaturated fat (polyunsaturated fat) which have to be consumed thorough or diet and if done so can have profound positive impacts on our health and wellbeing.
TYPES OF OMEGA 3 FATTY AICDS:
ALA (Alpha linoleic acid). Found in plant sources (Flax seeds, canola oil, chia seeds, walnuts, hemp seeds). It is mainly used for energy
EPA (Eicosapentaenoic acid). Found in animal and plant sources (Fatty fish, fish oil, micro algae). It has several different functions in your body. Part of it can be converted into DHA.
DHA (Docosahexaenoic acid). Found in animal sources (Fatty fish and fish oil as well as meat, eggs, and dairy from grass-fed animals). It is the key structural component of your brain, your eye retina and other body parts
However not all omega 3 fatty acids are created equally.
EPA and DHA represent the more complex biologically active forms of Omega 3 fatty acids which our bodies are best designed to uptake and make use of. ALA on the other hand is less complex and is mainly used for energy for the body.
ALA can be converted into EPA or DHA forms but the issue is that the conversion process is very inefficient (a lot of ALA is needed to make a sufficient amount of DHA) - In other words it is much more effective to obtain your omega 3 sources from animal foods such as fatty fish as those contain most EPA and DHA.
Because of this, vegans and vegetarians are often advised to take a Omega 3 supplement.
RECOMMENDED INTAKES
For EPA and DHA: A minimum of 250–500 mg combined of EPA and DHA per day for adults
For ALA: About 1.6 grams per day for men and 1.1 grams per day for women
WHY ARE OMEGA 3’s GOOD FOR US?
DHA especially, is absolutely vital for the healthy development of your brain and eye retinas
It is particularly important for pregnant women to ensure proper brain development and health of their baby
Consuming a consistent healthy level of omega 3’s can protect against several diseases:
Breast cancer
Depression and anxiety
ADHD
Various inflammatory diseases
Autoimmune diseases
Slowing down age related mental decline as well as Alzheimers disease
Other than that, omega 3’s are also a source of energy for our body and its daily functions.
THE HEALTH BENEFITS OF FATTY FISH
May lower risks of heart disease
Some studies have shown that increasing your consumption of fatty fish or fish oil supplements may lower your chances of developing heart disease. In a study of 40,000 men from the United States, those who regularly ate one or more servings of fish per week had overall a 15% lower chance of developing heart disease.
Based on Harvard Medical school, some of the possible ways in which the heart friendly omega 3’s work are: “Stabilizing blood flow in and around the heart, reducing blood triglyceride levels, lowering blood pressure, preventing blood clots and reducing inflammation.”
More research is needed to properly confirm a consistently positive link between consumption of fish and prevention of heart disease
Boosts brain health
Some studies have shown that a diet higher in omega 3 fatty acids can slow down mental decline and potentially help with treating Alzheimers disease.
For Alzheimer patients, those who had lower DHA levels in the hippocampus and the frontal cortex had more problems with slower cognition, learning difficulties and poor memory retention.
Furthermore, a low omega 3 diet is correlated with experiencing learning difficulties and poor memory retention. Additionally, in older adults, low levels of DHA have been linked to having a smaller brain size which is a indication that our brain size is shrinking
Additionally, omega 3’s have been found to be an essential component of a women's diet during pregnancy, as they promote the healthy development of the child's brain.
If you would like to read more about what to eat for a healthy brain, click here
Could help treat depression
Researchers noticed that depression is less common in countries where people eat higher amounts of fish, so it opened up the research question weather fish oils and Omega 3’s found in fatty fish can positively prevent depression and other mood disorders.
A study was done in 2009 where researchers reviewed three studies which were looking to find the effects of using EPA omega 3 fatty acid in the treatment of three different types of depression. Compared to the placebo group, those who were intaking more EPA showed a considerable mood improvement for all types of depression tested.
Furthermore a slightly older study from 2004 shower that people who suffer from minor depression, postpartum depression or suicidal thoughts had lower levels of both DHA and EPA in their bodies. Those patients who received a combination fo both EPA and DHA supplements shower a improvement in their depressive symptoms.
One proposed way in which omega 3’s work in treating depression is that these omega 3 molecules can “easily travel through the brain cell membrane and interact with mood-related molecules inside the brain” as was proposed by Harvard Medical School. Furthermore, omega 3’s also hold anti inflammatory proprietress which relieve depression.
May protect against vision in older age
When we talk about declining vision as we age we are referring to AMD also known as “Age Related Macular Degeneration”, for which there are two main types, wet and dry.
In 2008, researchers from 7 European countries had collaborated with the London school of Hygiene and Tropical medicine, in order to investigate a link between fish intake (omega 3’s) and the presence of wet AMD, while also including a control group.
The findings concluded that those people who ate at least one serving of fatty fish per week compared to the control group who ate none, were 50% less likely to have wet AMD which is an astounding difference. However it is important to mention that consumption of normal non fatty white fish did not have this effect, where it showed a clear inverse relationship between levels fo DHA/ EPA omega 3’s and the chance of developing AMD.
Lower risk of developing rheumatoid arthritis
The American College of Rheumatology had conducted a study in 2018 exploring the relationship between fish oil consumption (that is high in omega 3 fatty acids) and the prevalence of rheumatoid arthritis. The results showed that those participants who ate more than 2 servings of fish per week had the greatest “control of other arthritis”, where a higher intake was associated with better arthritis.
Although this study does only show a correlative relationship and not a causal relationship, there is promising implications for using omega 3’s as a way of reliving arthritis discomforts.
Protecting against certain cancers
For the treatment of breast cancer, the Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention took a look at the link between consuming omega 3 fatty acids from fish and the incidence of breast cancer in Asian patients. The results turned out promising and the researcher concluded that omega 3’s had a protective effect against breast cancer.
There has been some debate wether omega 3’s can also help with treating bowel and colon cancers, however the results of those studies remains mixed and inconclusive for now.
THINGS TO KEEP IN MIND
When choosing to add more fish into your diet, it is important to keep the following things in mind:
Sustainability: For sustainability purposes it is best to buy farmed fish compared to wild varieties, as it puts less stress on wild populations which gives them enough time to grow back in size
Mercury levels: Although the fatty fish which I have listed above are very low in any mercury traces, if you do decide to eat any other fish types (specifically shark, swordfish or ling), limit your consumption of those as they have much higher levels of mercury which is not beneficial for you.
Diversity: Feel free to experiment with different types of fish during your weeks, both fatty and non fatty types as all fish can offer amazing health benefits and taste great too, just avoid the ones with high mercury levels.
Considering canned or frozen: Wether you are tight on a budget or simply cant find fresh sources, canned or frozen fish are still incredibly good for you to eat and the best part is that they are much more affordable.
Eating 1-2 per week: When it comes to eating fatty fish, the science behind the omega 3 claims that it is recommend to eat these fish type 1 - 2 times per week to obtain most health benefits
Preparation & Cooking: For the fish to retain most of their valuable nutrients, it is best to prepare them either grilled, cooked in a pan or prepared in an oven. Once cooked, serve with a light drizzle of high quality extra virgin olive oil (I recently wrote a post about olive oil that can be found here). Avoid consuming fish mostly in deep fried varieties as that adds a lot of unnecessary fat, calorie and salt to your diet.
I learned a lot of new research and findings from this topic and I hope that you were able to able to learn a couple new pieces of knowledge too. At the end of the day it is all about keeping things including fish in a healthy sense of balance and moderation, along side a balanced diet rich in whole foods.
Try new foods including new fish you may have not tried before. Its all in the way you prepare and cook fish which really makes them taste amazing.
Thanks for taking the time to read this.
