Not All Fats Are Created Equal
Does the message “fatty foods are bad for you, and should be avoided at all costs” play a role in your day by day food choices? Do you look for the leanest cuts of fish to get protein, but not the fat? If so, you are not alone – that “cut out fat in your diet” tape has been playing in our minds and media for many years!
The truth?
Not all fats are created equal — nor is all fat bad for you.
Fats are indeed calorie dense and consumption of certain saturated and trans fatty acids contributes to and ups the risk of disease and inflammation. However, fat is an essential nutrient — just like protein, vitamins and minerals — and is vital for hormone production, vitamin absorption, lubrication and brain power. It’s critical to your health and well-being.
Bottom Line:
Some fats are beneficial, and some are detrimental, and it’s vitally important to know the difference!
The beneficial fats are monounsaturated fats, polyunsaturated fats (such as olive oil, avocado, nuts and seeds), and Omega-3 fatty acids. The long chain omega-3 fatty acids are found in all fish, and are especially high in cold-water fatty fish, such as salmon and mackerel.
How much fatty fish should you eat per week?
The term "fatty fish" may sound unappealing and, as previously mentioned, even “bad for you,” but actually these are the tastiest and healthiest foods from the sea. And the omega-3’s are found in the fat itself! Oily fish, such as salmon, tuna, sardines, mackerel, and trout, are full of omega-3 fatty acids — good fats, unlike the detrimental ones you find in most meats. For this reason, most all world health organizations, including the American Heart Association, recommend eating fatty fish at least 2 times a week, for a minimum of 8-12 ounces every week.
What does eating Omega-3 fatty acids do to your body?
These essential fatty acids are a part of the bi-lipid layer that surrounds each cell in your body (including your brain!) and allow nutrients to enter the cell more efficiently and waste products to exit. They also work to increase HDL (good) cholesterol, and decrease LDL (bad) cholesterol and triglycerides. Omega-3 fatty acids reduce inflammation, degeneration of joints, and the tendency of the blood to form clots. They are critical for the developing brain of infants and children.
What to look for when buying Salmon
When it comes to buying salmon, the first thing to ensuring that you are getting the most out of your purchase is to ask where the salmon came from. The background on the farm or the fishery is important in knowing whether it is sustainable or not.
Next, look at the salmon itself. If you can see the skin, the scales should be intact and moist without any marks or bruising.
On the meat, it should be rich in color, the fat should be bright white, the flesh should be smooth on the top of the filet and firm in texture. The aroma, once you open it from the wrapping at home, should be bright with no residual fishy aroma.
Why is Kvarøy Arctic Salmon so high in Omega-3 fatty acids?
Kvarøy Arctic salmon is particularly high in omega-3 fatty acids! You can see the beautiful Y striations of the omega-3 rich fat – because of the cold, strong currents it is reared in — the texture is firm and the flavor is mild and delicious with the aromatics of a sea breeze.
The high levels of omega-3 fatty acids are achieved through an innovative and ocean-friendly feed comprised of North Atlantic fish trim and an omega-3 rich micro-algae, called AlgaPrime. This feed has enabled Kvarøy to not only produce nutritious and delicious salmon, but to also reduce feeder fish dependency (called Fish In/Fish Out ratio) to .48 a pound of feeder fish trim for 1 pound of salmon raised on the farm — the lowest in the industry. In the wild, salmon eat about 10 lbs of fish per 1 pound of fish produced and even farmed salmon is generally a 4 to 1 ratio.
Just one 3.5-ounce serving of Kvarøy Arctic salmon has over 2000mg of omega-3s exceeding the weekly recommended goal from the U.S. Dietary Guidelines and American Heart Association. Now officially certified by the American Heart Association’s® Heart-Check Food Certification Program, our salmon has the highest amount of long-chain marine omega-3s per serving for any farm raised salmon according to tests conducted by our feed maker BioMar—an innovator in high performance, sustainable feed.
Order today at Fulton Fish Market ➞ Portions, Fillets, and Whole Fish are available!
