Pole made into a fish

Contents

Fear of mercury
Should children eat fish?
Fried, smoked, steamed or grilled?
What about this carp?

Canned tuna, herring in cream, fried tilapia and surimi sticks – these are the most common fish choices of Poles. The composition of the latter is: fish meat, water, starch, salt, sugar, preservatives and crab extract. Instead of seafood, we serve laboratory fruit on the plate. Is it salmon? Only which one? And what about this carp? Here is our fish guide. Dr. Anna Ukleja, specialist in clinical dietetics, comments.

Compared to other countries, Poles eat very little fish – an average of only 13 kg per person per year. Only 37 percent. fellow countrymen eat enough of them
If we decide to include fish on our menu, we usually go for pollock, herring and mackerel
There is a growing awareness among Poles that the meat of some fish living in heavily polluted seas contains heavy metals that are harmful to health: mercury, cadmium, lead, zinc and copper.
Mercury is especially dangerous for humans, which in the form of its organic form – methylmercury, enters the body of the fish directly through the gills.
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The statistical Portuguese eats 55,3 kg of fish and seafood annually. Spaniard – 46,2 kg, Lithuanian – 44,7 kg, and a Pole? He lowers the European average and ends the year with a result of 13 kg. We prefer to choose fish pollock, herring, mackerel, cod and salmon. And from seafood – prawns. As nutritionists emphasize, fish is not only a source of wholesome protein. Their nutritional value is determined by polyunsaturated fatty acids from the omega-3 family, such as eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA). They are important to us for several reasons. Firstly, they play a role in the prevention of atherosclerosis and coronary heart disease by lowering total cholesterol, triacylglycerols and LDL lipoproteins (“bad” cholesterol). Secondly, they prevent blood clots from forming in the walls of blood vessels and lower blood pressure. In addition, they have a positive effect on the development and work of the brain. They have anti-inflammatory, anti-allergic and antidepressant properties.

According to COBS data, only 37 percent of Poles eat enough fish. Are we afraid of mercury? «For several years we have heard information that fish living in heavily polluted seas contain heavy metals that are harmful to health: mercury, cadmium, lead, zinc and copper. Mercury is particularly dangerous for humans, which in the form of its organic form – methylmercury, enters the body of the fish directly through the gills. In contrast, the main source of mercury for fish is food. This element tends to accumulate in the guts – in the liver and muscles. Methylmercury is mainly absorbed through the human digestive systemand then rapidly transported by blood to the tissues. It easily crosses the blood-brain and blood-placenta barrier. In the adult brain, at high exposure levels, it causes cell loss in specific areas, most commonly in the cerebellum and visual cortex of the brain. For many years, there have been discussions in the scientific community about the relationship of certain neurological diseases such as autism, Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer’s disease or amyotrophic sclerosis with chemical pollution of the environment. However, there is still no sufficient evidence of a link between the occurrence of these diseases and mercury poisoning. »

Sea fish for health connoisseurs

Fear of mercury

He has big eyes. Dr. Anna Ukleja notes that in order to exceed the weekly acceptable level of mercury in the body, the average person would have to eat a dozen cans of tuna. So how much mercury can we consume, or what is the temporary tolerable weekly intake? «The maximum dose of mercurywhich does not cause disease symptoms, is 0,005 mg / kg body weight per week (including 0,0016 mg of organic mercury compounds) ». According to WHO, the concentration of mercury in the muscles of fish intended for consumption should not exceed 0,5 mcg Hg g-1. ” And how is mercury poisoning manifested? «The first symptom of poisoning is paraesthesia – numbness and tingling in the mouth and fingers, hands and feet that often occurs months after exposure. In the case of acute poisoning, there is a loss of coordination of movements, a narrowing of the field of vision, hearing loss and speech impairment. The effects of the injuries seen in infants are similar to the symptoms of cerebral palsy. »

Are all fish equally healthy? Controversy is – panga. The list of complaints is long: contaminated Mekong, hormonal injections, antibiotic-laden feed, and trace amounts of omega-3s. Defenders of the panga emphasize that we do not always have to find a “batch” of inferior quality in the store. One thing we can be sure of, the cheaper the fillet, the lower the quality of the meat. Popular butter, due to the high content of oils and paraffin esters called waxes, it is difficult to digest. Its frequent consumption may lead to abdominal pain, vomiting, nausea and skin lesions. Perhaps chuda tilapia it has a great taste, but low in protein, omega-3 and vitamins. What about salmon, which the press has not left a dry thread? It all depends on the origin. In Poland, the most popular is farmed – Norwegian or Scottish ones with a lower amount of omega-3 acids and a high concentration of dioxins (toxic substances of organic origin). The best choice is wild Alaskan salmon.

And what else? «Made of fish commonly eaten in Poland butterfish, perch, eel, roach and cod contain the most mercury. However, they contain the least amount of mercury shrimp, clams, oysters, herring, sardines, pollock, and fresh salmon (if it comes from heavily polluted waters of the Baltic Sea, it will also contain a lot of mercury). According to experts, the healthiest fish are from the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans. The North Sea is also slightly polluted. It is also important that the greatest amount of mercury is in large fish that have a long life and in predators that eat large numbers of smaller fish. »

Should children eat fish?

Can we all eat fish? Dr. Anna Ukleja draws attention to the recommendation of the European Food Safety Authority, according to which pregnant women should not eat fish species that are particularly contaminated with mercury, i.e. marlin, swordfish, shark and tuna. «Methylmercury readily crosses the blood-placenta barrier. It also passes into breast milk, contributing to the exposure of infants who may accumulate mercury in the blood cells and brain. This causes damage to the central nervous system. You shouldn’t eat fish from poorly controlled Asian farms such as: panga, ryba maślana, tilapia. In addition, selenium, an essential mineral found in the flesh of ocean fish, protects against toxicity of trace amounts of mercury. Fish consumed in the recommended amounts do not pose a risk that may result from the presence of mercury in their meat. » Children should not give up fish, the recommended amount is one or two portions a week. Both will work well lean fish: cod, pollock, hake, zander, and fatty fish: salmon, halibut, mackerel. However, they are not recommended predatory species: perch, king mackerel, swordfish and shark. Babies are best served fish boiled in water as an addition to vegetable soup or vegetable puree.

This is one of the healthiest fish. It does not accumulate heavy metals and has a lot of vitamins

Fried, smoked, steamed or grilled?

Fish lose the least nutritional value during grilling, baking in foil and stewing in the steamer. Omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids are temperature sensitive. And smoking, like any thermal treatment, removes 40 to 60 percent. vitamins and minerals. Nutritionists emphasize that we should eat smoked fish only from time to time. Popular canned food is not a bad choice, as long as we do not have high blood pressure problems due to the high salt content.

When deciding on canned fish, it is better to choose the one in pieces and in your own or tomato sauces, and not in oil. Breaded and deep-fried fish are the worst for health. They lose most of their nutritional value, and the added oil turns them into caloric bombs. For comparison – 100 g of fried flounder equals 145 kcal (16,3 g – protein, 3,3 g – carbohydrates, 6,1 g – fat), and 100 g steamed flounder equals 86 kcal (17 g – protein, 0 g – carbohydrates, 0,9 g – fat).

What about this carp?

Carp can be loved or hated. Opponents accuse him of a post-war tradition, calorific value (100 g of fresh fish – 110 kcal), low nutritional value and a muddy aftertaste. Proponents point out that, contrary to appearances, it is a medium-fat fish, a valuable source of wholesome protein, B vitamins, vitamin D, magnesium, selenium, potassium and zinc. Eat, then, or not to eat. It certainly won’t hurt from the holidays. Just remember that smaller carps weighing from 1,2 to 1,4 kg are best tasting. You can recognize a fresh fish by its shiny, springy skin, red gills and raised glass eyes. We recommend it Zator carpwhich in 2011 was entered on the EU list of products with a protected designation of origin. In the case of this fish, you certainly do not need to be afraid of mercury, but you do need to be careful with the bones.

Fear of mercury

Should children eat fish?

Fried, smoked, steamed or grilled?

What about this carp?

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