Now that’s a good question. We all need more omega3 fatty acids in our diet, but should we eat fish. Fish is contaminated with mercury.
And if eating fish is a bad idea because of the mercury, how else do you get that Omega3 in your diet?
You can get Omega3 fatty acids from some plant sources, but by far the best place to find good quantities of the right type of Omega3 fats if fish.
But there is a problem with eating fish isn’t there? What about mercury contamination? Isn’t fish contaminated with mercury?
The EPA says that there is mercury contamination in all fish.
And it’s not a good idea to get mercury into your body, particularly for children. Your body doesn’t get rid of it.
But the EPA does not tell us to take fish out of our diet. It only has small amounts of mercury, and eaten in moderation it’s ok to eat fish, and they offer guidelines on how much.
Its ok to eat around 2 serves of fish a week. However for children or pregnant women theres some more things to think about, because mercury is more of a risk to children or developing fetuses.
So for pregnant women, or children, you ought to avoid eating shark, swordfish, king mackerel, or tilefish. These are high in mercury.
But it’s unnecessary to eliminate fish from your diet. You can eat it, in small amounts.
But of course if you understand the importance of omega3 fatty acids in your diet you need a regular supply of fish oil. Preferable a daily supply. And there is the rub. You see for most of us ordinary people eating fish regularly is really expensive. Fish is getting more and more expensive all the time, and as it gets scarcer it gets more expensive.
And it’s ok to eat it in small quantities, but if you’re just eating it for those good fats there are better ways. Of course if you love eating fish then no problem. Eat it.
There is mercury in fish, but small amounts. There is a way to get your Omega3 fats into your diet with no mercury, and at a lower cost.
Its using Omega3 fatty acid supplements. These contain fish oil, but the very best fish oil supplements source the cleanest fish in the ocean and then put it through an extremely robust molecular distillation process that means that levels of mercury, as well as other common contaminants of fish oil, are undetectable.
But be aware that although many fish oil supplements claim to be contamination free, there are varying standards, none binding, and not all fish oil supplements are truly contamination free.
So if you’re just eating fish for it’s Omega3 fatty acids, don’t bother. There’s cheaper ways that allow you to take your Omega3 fats daily, without the mercury. But if you just love to eat fish then go for it.