In the list of heart-healthy foods, fish are easily at the top. From tuna to salmon, currently fish are very common on plates of health-aware consumers. Though most types of fish are heart healthy, some will do you more harm than good because of high levels of mercury or other contaminants. To consume heart-healthy fish you should know about facts of fish, which will help you to maintain a happy heart.
Followings are the heart-protecting criteria of fish:
How Fish Assists Your Heart
Fish doesn’t contain saturated fat which causes clogging of the arteries (beef has a lot of this). Fishes are full of important nutrients like magnesium, potassium, and niacin which help in lowering the blood pressure and raisings the levels of good cholesterol.
The real wealth of fish is that it contains omega-3 fatty acids. These well-known fish oils aid the heart in a huge number of ways, such as protecting the arteries from damage. The platelets that hurt your heart are stuck together to form a hard plaque, and fish oil help to break down these plaques so blood can flow smoothly through your veins. They also increase high density lipoprotein (HDL) levels, thus lowering the triglyceride levels as well as blood pressure. Fish oils protect the heart from arrhythmias which can lead to unexpected death. In “The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition,” researchers published (May 2007) a report that established that people who consumed about 2 and ½ servings of fish in every week had a29% lower risk of serious heart disease than persons who ingested less.
Because of the amount of positive research concerning fish, the AHA (American Heart Association) suggests consuming fish at least twice in a week. Individuals who are suffering from heart disease like myocardial infarctions, heart blocks, arrhythmia, atherosclerosis, atheroma and patients with high lipid levels should intake fish at least once a day. As fish oils increase the good cholesterol levels, bad cholesterol has less of a chance of being a problem. Excess amount of LDL increase the risk of heart disease, obesity, and causes other lipid issues.
Best Kinds of Fish
Not all fish contains all positive nutrients, and some lack adequate omega-3 fatty acids and others important minerals that protect your heart. Usually, the fish lives in cold-water have much more heart-healthy constituents than the fish that lives in warm-water. Salmon, mackerel, sardines, tuna, halibut and herring are the best sources of omega-3. On the other hand, red snapper, catfish, trout, pike, and other warm-water fishes are not so heart friendly and contain much less omega-3 oil. Ocean fish are also thought to be healthier than those who live in lakes because of the amount of contaminants now present in many lakes.
Children under 12 years of age and pregnant mothers should avoid fish like tilefish, king mackerel, swordfish and shark because this fish contain high levels of mercury which is harmful for children and unborn babies.
Shellfish, such as king crab and lobster, contain high cholesterol levels which can put your heart in danger, but the cholesterol levels of shellfish are not higher than most red lean meat or chicken levels.
Farmed Fish vs. Wild fish
According to WHO (World Health Organization), one third of the world’s fish come from farms. This development has brought fish prices down significantly, but farmed fish are not always good for your health. Farmed fish are grown in water-filled enclosures where they eat byproducts and junk food and are less active than their sea-bound brothers. Wild fish are a lot more active as they hunt for their food to survive, so everything they eat comes straight from nature. Wild fish are leaner and contain elevated amounts of omega-3 fatty acids. Some researchers suggest that you remove the surface fat and skin of farmed fish before cooking.
Fish Oil Supplements
There are several types of foods that contain omega-3 fatty acids like eggs, milk, yogurt, cereal, cheese, granola bars and tortillas. But these are not as full of nutrients as fish. Additionally, fish have many other heart protecting nutrients which are not found in fortified foods.
Peoples who don’t like fish can take fish oil supplements. Though these are good for you, the pills that contain fish oil are not as effective as simply eating fish. These supplements can also interact with other drugs you are taking and cause side effects.
Author Bio:
Howard Thomas, a professional content writer could live his life in a corporate world. But he decides to come out of box and become a health blogger. He personally thanks to Bootcamp Balmoral for giving him a new direction for changing his life to a new course.