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OMEGA-3'S

Gabe Mirkin, M.D.

The American Heart Association recommends eating at least two servings weekly of fish. Fish, particularly cold-water, fatty fish like salmon, mackerel, sardines, lake trout, and tuna, contain omega-3 fatty acids that protect against heart disease.

Omega-3s can help prevent blood platelets from clotting and sticking to artery walls in the form of cholesterol-rich plaques. Most heart attacks happen when blood clots lodge in veins and arteries, preventing blood from circulating properly. Omega-3s may also help prevent inflammation in diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis, and lack of omega-3s may also cause attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and mood disorders, such as post-partum depression.

All deep-water fish contain omega-3s, but so do other fish and seafood, including non-fatty fish, such as halibut, flounder, perch, trout and cod. Shrimp, lobster, clams, and oysters also provide decent amounts of omega-3s, as do freshwater fish.

Wild fish are not richer in omega-3 fish oils than farm-raised varieties. Farm-raised fish such as salmon and trout won't grow without omega-3 fatty acids in their diet, so fish farmers add it to the fish meal. Farmed catfish, however, do not need omega-3 fatty acids, so farm-raised catfish tends to have less omega-3s than wild catfish. In the wild, fish get their omega-3s from algae, plankton and other fish that they may eat.

You don't need to eat fish to get omega-3s. You can get omega-3s by eating whole grains, beans, such as soybeans and seeds . Flaxseeds are among the richest plant sources of omega-3s.

Nearly all fish contain some amount of methyl mercury, which can damage nerves, particularly in young children. Mercury is released into the air by pollution. Rainwater brings it into streams and oceans, where bacteria transform it into methyl mercury. Fish get their dose as they feed on algae and other organisms. Older, larger fish that eat other fish accumulate the most methyl mercury, so big carnivores such as swordfish and tuna pose the greatest risk to susceptible populations. Methyl mercury is stored in the flesh, so there is no way to remove it.

The Food and Drug Administration recommends that pregnant women and women who might become pregnant, nursing mothers, and young children not eat shark, swordfish, mackerel, and tilefish. You should eat lots of other types of fish and shellfish. If a pregnant woman chooses to avoid seafood, she should make sure she gets plenty of omega-3's from seeds such as flaxseed, or from supplements. The FDA does not recommend limits on fish consumption for the general population.

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Checked 5/3/07