Farmed vs Wild Salmon: Setting the record straight…

Is farmed salmon dangerous to your health? Alarm bells went off when higher levels of PCB’s were found in farmed salmon compared to wild salmon. PCB’s are potentially carcinogenic compounds once used in industrial insulation that have since been banned in the United States. The knee jerk response by many diet and nutrition gurus was to advocate wild salmon consumption and avoid farmed salmon.

What many ignored by taking this one-sided approach are the health benefits of salmon, a rich source of Omega 3 fatty acids. Omega-3 fish oils help the heart in a number of ways. They help keep your heart arteries clean by reducing triglycerides levels (high levels can cause plaque build up) and make platelets less sticky (prevents clots from forming). They also help prevent arrhythmias which may explain the reduced risk of fatal heart attacks in some studies.

Taking an even aggressive estimate of the theoretical risk posed by higher levels of PCB’s found in these early studies of farmed salmon, you still come out with a risk benefit analysis heavily in favor of farmed salmon consumption. 300 people would be protected against heart disease for every person that develops cancer. Conjecture aside, this debate is becoming moot as salmon producers in North and South America have reduced the PCB content of farmed salmon to levels approaching that of wild salmon. They have done this my replacing some of the fish meal feed, the primary source of PCBs in farmed salmon, with vegetable meal.

The message to avoid farmed salmon, coupled with the higher cost of wild salmon, may have convinced some Americans to avoid salmon all together. This is a tragedy because the average American diet is already deficient in Omega 3.

Add to this the knowledge that not all Omega 3s are created equal. While there are other vegetarian sources of Omega 3, such as flax, walnuts, and soy, the majority of studies demonstrating the protective benefits of Omega 3 against heart disease, stroke, Alzheimer’s, and cancer have been with the fish form. Unfortunately, limiting consumption to vegetarian Omega 3 fatty acids will not afford you the full protective benefits of these fish-based Omega 3 fatty acids. You may have heard that these vegetarian sources of Omega-3 can be converted in our bodies to the longer chain fished-based Omega 3s but this conversion is very inefficient.

Concerned about mercury? Not to worry. Both farmed and wild salmon are low in mercury. So while I also enjoy wild salmon, farmed salmon is a safe, healthy food that is affordable and available fresh year round.

Popularity: 2% [?]

Related posts

• No related posts.