AVOID FISH FRAUDS
Some studies have found that seafood may be mislabelled 25 to 70 percent
of the time. Labels for common species like Atlantic cod, red snapper, and
wild salmon are swapped with versions of fish that are cheaper or less
desirable. For example, tilefish can be labeled as red snapper and escolar is
presented as white tuna, primarily in sushi venues. (Escolar is a type of
snake mackerel, not even a tuna at all, and its oily flesh can cause digestive
problems in some people when they eat more than a dozen grams.) It’s
difficult for you as the consumer to investigate every piece of fish you eat
(and more regulation of the seafood industry is needed), but you can do a
few things. Ask questions about the origin of the fish. If your retailer or
restaurant is not able to give answers about the seafood it is selling, you
may want to make a different choice. And if the price is too good to be
true, it may be a sign that you’re looking at mislabelled fish. Also, buy the
whole fish whenever possible. You can ask for it to be cut into fillets at the
store. The more processed your fish and the more hands it passes through,
the more opportunities for a bait and switch.Bottom line: I don’t want you to think fat is evil, because many food sources
contain the kind you want and need. Moreover, fat goes a long way in helping
you feel satisfied. But this may be one of the more confusing nutritional areas
because fat comes in so many forms from so many sources, and because the
thinking on it has been in flux over the past several decades. To make it easy to
understand fats, use this guide:
Fat Friends or Foes?
FRIENDLY FIX-IT FATS
Monounsaturated/Polyunsaturated Fats: Dominant in avocado and avocado
oil; corn oil; fish oils; olives and olive oil; peanuts, peanut butter, and peanut oil;
rapeseed oil; nuts, nut butters, and nut oils; safflower oil; seeds; sesame oil; and
sunflower oil. Omega-3 and omega-6 fats are forms of polyunsaturated fats—
omega-3s come from fatty fish and some nuts, while omega-6s come from seeds,
nuts, and the oils extracted from them. We tend to get a lot more omega-6s, but