•
10-11-2023
•
reading time 3 minutes
•
52076 views
•
save
Whether for pasta or snacks, there is a huge hype surrounding canned fish on social media. But how healthy or unhealthy is it exactly? And what is the difference between canned fish in oil and in water? Kassa sorted it out!
Whether you like tuna, salmon, herring or sardines, all kinds of canned fish are now available in the supermarket. In addition, it is packed in plain water, olive oil or a certain sauce. This all affects how healthy the product is and what it can be used for. For example, fish in oil is often tastier in salads and fish in water is better suited for frying in a pan or using in a pasta dish, for example.
What is oily fish?
We call fish ‘fat’ if it contains more than 5 percent fat. For oily fish, think of Atlantic salmon, herring, mackerel or sardines. It doesn’t matter whether you use fresh fish, frozen or canned fish, except for salmon. Fresh salmon is usually Atlantic salmon, which is an oily species. Canned or frozen salmon is often less fatty from the Pacific Ocean. You can check how much fat the fish contains on the label for packaged fish. For example, fish species that are not fatty include tuna, bass or cod or coalfish.
Fried fish also contains more than 5 grams of fat per 100 grams, but the types used for this, such as kibbeling and tastybekje, are ‘lean’ fish. The frying fat in particular ensures that it contains more fat, so that doesn’t count!
Canned fish (almost) as healthy as fresh
The Nutrition Center recommends eating oily fish at least once a week. Fish contains special fish fatty acids, which are good for the heart and blood vessels. They are mainly found in fish such as mackerel, salmon, sardines and herring. The good news: these fish fatty acids are well preserved when canning fish, so in that respect they are just as healthy!
However, there is a difference in the liquid in which the fish is canned. Naturally, fish in oil or a salty tomato sauce is somewhat unhealthier than fish in water. Canned fish in water has the advantage that the fish fatty acids are better retained in the fish itself. In the case of oil, some of the fatty acids are transferred to the oil. When the oil is poured off, some of the healthy fish fatty acids are lost.
What about the dangers of fish?
In recent years, you have increasingly read about so-called mercury poisoning, which occurred in people who ate a lot of fish every day. What are the chances that you will actually get sick from eating fish? The short answer is that you don’t have to worry about it seriously, because you have to eat a lot of fish to get mercury poisoning. Whether it is canned, frozen or fresh does not make much difference in that respect.
Too much of these foods or other exposure to mercury can cause mercury poisoning. This causes unpleasant neurological symptoms and can even be fatal if left untreated. But because there are strict requirements within the European Union regarding how much of these types of heavy metals may be contained in foods, overdoses are rare.
When in doubt, check the label!
As with any product, you won’t know exactly what’s in it until you inspect the label. So do you buy canned fish in a special sauce (which is increasingly found near the cheese and dried sausage section) and are you unsure about how healthy it is? Then just check the label! Pay particular attention to the salt content, because sauces can sometimes have quite a high amount of salt.
Source: Nutrition Center/Health Network/World Cancer Research Fund
2023-11-10 08:41:14
#unhealthy #canned #fish #facts #glance #Kassa #BNNVARA
