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How safe is imported fish?

Mar 05, 2010, 1:06 pm.

Q. Is imported frozen fish from countries like India and Vietnam safe? I
avoid buying any food imported from China but I bought frozen Swai Basa Fish (farmed) from Vietnam and frozen Squid
(caught wild) from India. They tasted really good and they were cheap,
but I’m wondering if we can trust those imports or they may be full of
some toxic stuff.

A. Theoretically, the safety of fish being sold in U.S. markets is monitored by federal agencies such as the FDA, whose job it is to be sure that the fish sold for human consumption in the U.S is “”safe, wholesome, and not misbranded or deceptively packaged.” (Institute of Medicine on Seafood Safety)

But as we’ve seen lately, the ability of the FDA to effectively police the food supply and enforce its regulations is in serious doubt. Just a few years ago, for example, there was a scandal in which salmon being sold for a premium as “wild-caught” in both wholesale and retail markets turned out to be cheap farmed salmon. ( Story from New York Times)

To make things even more challenging, fishing and farming practices are changing rapidly around the globe as demand for seafood increases. New restrictions and best practices are being implemented. But loopholes and work-arounds are also constantly being discovered and exploited. It’s a moving target!

The best resource I’ve found to keep up with these issues is Seafood Watch. These guys are working hard to stay on top of all of these issues and to provide up-to-date resources for consumers trying to make safe and responsible choices. They have a number of tools for consumers, including a mobile app for your smart phone or a low-tech wallet card, as well as in-depth reports.

I scanned Seafood Watch’s reports on both the fish you mentioned. In terms of toxins or contaminants, I didn’t see too much to worry about with the wild-caught squid, but these comments on farmed swai basa got my attention:

“Commercial aquaculture for finfish in Viet Nam continues to use relatively low technology and many operations continue to use homemade feeds…[with] little or no management of aquaculture operations…”

The safety of these fish as food obviously depends primarily on the water they’re raised in and the food they are fed. They might be perfectly fine, but it doesn’t look as if anyone is paying too much attention.

From a sustainability perspective, which is more about the long-term health of the oceans than the safety of the food, both wild-caught squid and farmed swai basa are considered “good alternatives” but not “best choices.”

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Balancing a high sodium diet

Mar 02, 2010, 10:13 am.

Q. I’m a college student and while I definitely focus on maintaining a balanced diet I am concerned about my sodium intake. With the amount of processed foods in the school cafeteria, it’s almost impossible to maintain a low sodium diet. I’m healthy and active with a normal blood pressure and I’ve always considered sodium the least worrisome of the food evils (though high blood pressure does run in my family). My personal assumption has always been that as long as I increase my water intake along with sodium, everything will “balance out” in the body. Is there any truth to this? If so, how much water is necessary to offset 2400 mg sodium over the recommended daily value?

A. First, I congratulate you for making nutrition a priority! Secondly, I sympathize with your challenge of limiting sodium when faced with typical cafeteria food. Thirdly, I agree that because you are healthy, active, and have normal blood pressure, you may not need to worry too much about some extra sodium in your diet.

As for “balancing” the sodium intake, drinking more water will help mitigate excess water retention due to the high sodium diet. (Ironic, but true.) How much water it takes depends on all kinds of variables: your activity level, temperature and humidity of your environment, and so on. As a general rule, if you are urinating several times a day and your urine is pale in color, you are adequately hydrated. Keep in mind, however, that certain drugs and vitamin supplements can color the urine.

Many people also believe that increasing potassium is a good idea when sodium intake is high. See this post for more on that.

Finally, a couple of suggestions on how to keep your sodium intake sane, despite the challenges you describe.

1. Salad bar! Most cafeterias offer a salad bar and here, at least, the vegetables are not likely to be drenched in salt. As a bonus, vegetables are a great source of potassium and water! Watch out for salty add-ons like bacon, sunflower seeds, olives, three-bean salad, and mixed dressings. Most salad bars include cruets of oil and vinegar…use those for your dressing.

2. Say no to avoidable salt. You may have to live with a certain amount of sodium in the prepared foods in the cafeteria. But you can opt out of salty but nutritionally empty foods like chips and French fries, right?

3. Campaign for change! Talk to the cafeteria manager (or your student life rep or the school newspaper editor…) and ask if the food service can pay more attention to offering lower sodium options. With the huge public debate going on right now over reducing sodium intake, they should be a little more tuned in to your concern.

Hang in there! You’ll soon have more control over your food choices and it sounds as if you are motivated to make good ones.

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Walnuts are high in omega-3s but there’s a catch

Feb 26, 2010, 12:14 pm.

Q. I always hear that walnuts are great for their Omega-3 levels, but I've also heard the ratio of Omega3 to Omega6 is also very important in one's diet. And walnuts' ratio of Omega3 to Omega6 doesn't seem that great, so I am confused.

Monica's Response: Walnuts contain the most omega-3 fats of any nuts. An ounce of English walnuts contains about 2.5 grams of omega-3 fats, which is about twice the suggested Daily Value for omega-3.

But, you're right: current thinking is that the ratio of omega-6 to omega-3 fats is at least as important as the absolute intake. For most people, the challenge is to decrease omega-6 and/or increase omega-3 to approach a 4:1 ratio (four times as much omega-6 as omega-3). Some people think you should aim for 2:1 or even 1:1. Given that the average ratio in the Western diet is around 20:1, I think that getting it down to 4:1 would be a big improvement!

While walnuts are a good source of omega-3, they are a better source of omega-6. An ounce contains about 10g of omega-6 for a ratio of 4:1. If walnuts are the only source of omega 3 in your diet, then 4:1 is as low as you'll be able to get that ratio–and that assumes no other sources of omega-6.

To decrease that ratio further, you'd need to add other sources of omega-3 (without increasing omega-6).

How healthy is 100% fruit juice, really?

Feb 17, 2010, 11:03 am.

Q. What should I look for when buying fruit juice? For example the “100% pure and natural orange juice” says it contains 0% Vitamin C. How is that possible? Another one provides 100% Vitamin C but from the list of ingredients we
see that Vitamin C is actually added.

A. The USDA considers a half cup of fruit juice equivalent to a serving of fruit but I have my doubts. Processed fruit juice–even 100% juice–is a distant second to fresh whole fruit in terms of its nutritional value.

For one thing, fruit juice is a very concentrated source of sugar and
calories. All the fiber, which slows the absorption of the sugars in
whole fruit, has been removed.

Secondly, many (most?) of the naturally-occurring nutrients are lost during processing, pasteurization, and storage. As you found, manufacturers may compensate for this by adding nutrients back to the juice after the fact. You could get the same benefit from taking a vitamin C capsule.

Nutritionally, I’d rank processed fruit juice only slightly higher than soda and other sweetened beverages.

If you choose to drink fruit juice, consume it in moderation. Freshly-prepared juice (made from whole fruit with a juicer and consumed immediately) preserves more of the antioxidants. But for the full nutritional benefits of fruit, I think you’d be far better off consuming whole fresh fruit–and drinking water!

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