Health aspects of regular consumption of fish and omega-3-fatty acids
- 15.09.2015
- English Articles
- Sonja Fischer
- Michael Glei
Peer-reviewed | Manuscript received: February 16, 2015 | Revision accepted: July 2, 2015
Introduction
In Germany, fish is eaten significantly less than meat. According to the federal statistic office the per-capita fish intake was around 14.4 kg in 2012 (measured as round weight) [1]. The German Nutrition Society (DGE) recommends a weekly consumption of 80–150 g low-fat fish (e. g. cod, redfish, saithe) and 70 g high-fat fish (e. g. herring, mackerel) (• Figure 1) [2]. This equals a per-capita-intake of 15 kg low-fat and 7.3 kg high-fat fish as measured by the round weight [3]. Thus, the Germans did not reach the recommended dosage on average.
The great importance attributed to fish in the people’s diet is based on its nutritional values. Fish are, depending on their genus and species, rich in the polyunsaturated n3-FA eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) as well as easily digestible proteins, which contain all essential amino acids (• Figure 2).
Summary
Fish are valuable health foods due to their content of polyunsaturated omega-3- fatty acids (n3-FA) as well as essential amino acids, vitamins and minerals. Nevertheless, fish consumption is still significantly lower than meat consumption in Germany. Though there are indications that a regular, moderate consumption of fish or n3-FA might help reducing cardiovascular risk factors (e.g. hypertension, hyperlipidemia, hyperglycemia, inflammation) and positively influencing the risk for certain tumor diseases. This article provides a current overview on the health effects of a high fish or n3-FA consumption.
Keywords: fish, n3-FA, cardiovascular disease, hypertension, hyperlipidemia, inflammation, diabetes mellitus type 2, atherosclerosis, cancer
