Catfish may not be a beauty, but it can make you look and feel better
Waterloo, ON—Many of us in our fifties and beyond are doing it, and if we’re not, we’d certainly like to: trying to eat better so we can look and feel younger.
Well, the answer might be at our local supermarket’s fresh fish counter. The Japanese, who have the world’s longest life expectancy, also eat the most fish at one to three servings per day. Researchers say the traditional Japanese fish-based, low-fat diet may be the secret to longevity.
And there’s mounting evidence of the many health benefits of fish. New guidelines recently set by the Harvard Medical School say that we should eat seafood twice a week. According to the study, women who ate fish once a week reduced their risk of stroke by 22 per cent, compared to a 52 per cent reduction for those who ate fish five or more times per week.
The findings also indicate that several fish species help people live longer, healthier lives and reduce the risk of heart disease and many other diseases. The Harvard School of Public Health recently reported on a 16-year study which found that women who consumed fish showed a 30 per cent lower risk of heart disease.
HealthyOntario.com says that fish also provides a wide variety of vitamins and minerals, including vitamins A and D, phosphorus, magnesium, selenium, iodine and high quality protein—which helps build and repair body tissues. This is especially important after the age of 30, when muscle tissue begins to break down.
U.S. Farm-Raised Catfish is one of the most eco-friendly, healthy fish available in Canada. It’s raised in clean, fresh-water aquifers and top-fed a gourmet diet of floating puffed grains so it doesn’t have a “fishy” taste or aroma. It was also the first fresh fish to join the Heart and Stroke Foundation’s Health Check program, a non-profit program which helps consumers make healthy choices at the grocery store.
While there’s no debating we should all eat more fish, environmentalists do caution us to select species that aren’t over-fished, or better still, species that are farmed according to the best standards. Luckily, U.S. Farm-Raised Catfish is on the “best choice” list of numerous independent environmental watchdogs like the Monterey Bay Aquarium and the National Audubon Society.
Eating healthfully doesn’t have to be boring. These tasty recipes, Bronzed Catfish and Catfish with Tangy Orange Sauce feature healthy U.S. Farm-Raised Catfish and may be just the thing to inject some flavour into your healthy diet.
