Post by FWS on Nov 30, 2012 15:36:57 GMT -6
Eat more fish
Laine Welch
Bristol Bay Times
November 30, 2012
The American diet includes the second lowest percentage of seafood in the world - about 15 pounds per capita per year, compared to 110 pounds of red meat and 73 pounds of poultry. The lack of essential nutrients from seafood (notably, omega 3 fatty acids) causes tens of thousands of preventable deaths each year, according to health professionals.
"It has just been in the last few decades as we've industrialized our food supply that we've almost eradicated this nutrient from our diet. When you don't get it, all kinds of bad things start happening," said Randy Hartnell, a former Bristol Bay fishermen and creator of Vital Choice Seafoods. (www.vitalchoice.com)
Now U.S. nutritionists are getting serious about turning that deficit around.
"New federal dietary guidelines in 2010 promote eating seafood twice a week, but unfortunately today Americans eat less than half of that," said Linda Cornish, director of the Seafood Foundation, a new nonprofit launched this month as part of the National Fisheries Institute.
The Foundation will focus on building awareness of the health benefits of seafood to a wider population using a three pronged approach.
"An education component teaching about the benefits of eating seafood; getting our moms, dads and children to understand the great tastes seafood has to offer, and helping Americans understand how to incorporate seafood meals into their daily routine," Cornish said. "We need to help Americans become more confident seafood buyers, and to show how easy it is to cook seafood at home.
That, she said is the biggest hurdle.
"The biggest obstacle will be to overcome the routine of the daily meal, and the notion that fish is smelly and harder to prepare," Cornish said. "When in fact fish is so easy and quick to prepare you can get a meal on the table in well under 30 minutes. It is a matter of just showing how easy it is to incorporate that into their daily meals."
The Seafood Foundation is forming partnerships with health organizations, seafood companies and industry stakeholders to help fund media and hands on campaigns, such as cooking demonstrations in supermarkets, hospitals and community centers.
Cornish said the seafood effort is very timely, as more people care about what they are eating.
"I think there is definitely an awakening among our American citizens in terms of what our food system looks like. People want to be more aware of what we put into our bodies," she said. "So often in our busy daily lives we run to pick up something fast and we don't realize how detrimental that is to our overall health. I don't think the average American understands what nutrients they really do need to function well. They take lots of supplements to get a feeling of well-being when in fact, they need to find and buy the best seafood and produce they can to have an overall wellness that is natural."
Cornish hopes to hear from others interested in promoting the health benefits of seafood. Reach her at lcornish@seafoodfoundation.org
Omega's can't be produced by our bodies and must be obtained from foods, notably fish and some plant sources.
Laine Welch
Bristol Bay Times
November 30, 2012
The American diet includes the second lowest percentage of seafood in the world - about 15 pounds per capita per year, compared to 110 pounds of red meat and 73 pounds of poultry. The lack of essential nutrients from seafood (notably, omega 3 fatty acids) causes tens of thousands of preventable deaths each year, according to health professionals.
"It has just been in the last few decades as we've industrialized our food supply that we've almost eradicated this nutrient from our diet. When you don't get it, all kinds of bad things start happening," said Randy Hartnell, a former Bristol Bay fishermen and creator of Vital Choice Seafoods. (www.vitalchoice.com)
Now U.S. nutritionists are getting serious about turning that deficit around.
"New federal dietary guidelines in 2010 promote eating seafood twice a week, but unfortunately today Americans eat less than half of that," said Linda Cornish, director of the Seafood Foundation, a new nonprofit launched this month as part of the National Fisheries Institute.
The Foundation will focus on building awareness of the health benefits of seafood to a wider population using a three pronged approach.
"An education component teaching about the benefits of eating seafood; getting our moms, dads and children to understand the great tastes seafood has to offer, and helping Americans understand how to incorporate seafood meals into their daily routine," Cornish said. "We need to help Americans become more confident seafood buyers, and to show how easy it is to cook seafood at home.
That, she said is the biggest hurdle.
"The biggest obstacle will be to overcome the routine of the daily meal, and the notion that fish is smelly and harder to prepare," Cornish said. "When in fact fish is so easy and quick to prepare you can get a meal on the table in well under 30 minutes. It is a matter of just showing how easy it is to incorporate that into their daily meals."
The Seafood Foundation is forming partnerships with health organizations, seafood companies and industry stakeholders to help fund media and hands on campaigns, such as cooking demonstrations in supermarkets, hospitals and community centers.
Cornish said the seafood effort is very timely, as more people care about what they are eating.
"I think there is definitely an awakening among our American citizens in terms of what our food system looks like. People want to be more aware of what we put into our bodies," she said. "So often in our busy daily lives we run to pick up something fast and we don't realize how detrimental that is to our overall health. I don't think the average American understands what nutrients they really do need to function well. They take lots of supplements to get a feeling of well-being when in fact, they need to find and buy the best seafood and produce they can to have an overall wellness that is natural."
Cornish hopes to hear from others interested in promoting the health benefits of seafood. Reach her at lcornish@seafoodfoundation.org
Omega's can't be produced by our bodies and must be obtained from foods, notably fish and some plant sources.