Farmed salmon gets an anti-inflammatory makeover
The latest nutrient data from the USDA shows that farmed Atlantic salmon has undergone what is perhaps the most dramatic nutritional makeover in history.
Salmon is known for being rich in anti-inflammatory omega-3 fatty acids and, as you know, the anti-inflammatory diet is very big these days. (The recognition of inflammation as a key factor in heart disease and other common diseases was hailed by Time Magazine as one of the Top Ten Medical Breakthroughs of 2008.)
Several years ago, I caused quite a stir by pointing out that farmed salmon was actually highly inflammatory. When I first published the IF Ratings, a 3-ounce serving had an IF Rating of -491. (For more background, see this related post on IF Ratings.)
As I (and others) pointed out, farmed Atlantic salmon was quite high in arachidonic acid, an inflammatory fatty acid from the omega-6 family. The problem was that farmed salmon were being fed a diet rich in omega-6 vegetable oils rather than a more natural diet of omega-3 rich fish and algae. As a result, their flesh was unnaturally high in omega-6 fats.
Fish farmers apparently got the message! Big changes in aquaculture practices have resulted in farmed Atlantic salmon that is much lower in arachidonic acid...so much lower, in fact, that the most recent samples tested by the USDA had an IF Rating of +775 per 3 ounce serving!
So, after years of warning people to avoid farmed salmon, especially if they were trying to follow an anti-inflammatory diet, I'm now putting farmed salmon back on the menu!
NOTE: Unfortunately, the USDA only updated the nutrient information for raw farmed salmon and has failed to provide updated data for cooked farmed salmon. As a result, the IF Rating for cooked farmed salmon still shows as inflammatory. Until the USDA updates these listings as well, I would consider the nutrient info (and IF Rating) for cooked farmed salmon to be out-of-date.
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Posted by: Evelyn Tribole, MS, RD | Jan 9, 2009 8:03:04 PM
Do you know constitutes the new diet of the farmed/Altantic salmon?
Evelyn Tribole, MS, RD
Omega-6 Research News [http://omega-6-omega-3-balance.omegaoptimize.com/]
Posted by: Family Nutritionist | Jan 11, 2009 8:54:16 PM
Have ALL salmon farmers changed their feeding practice, or just some of them? How is the consumer to know what those flash-frozen farmed fillets actually ate?
Posted by: DavidBoleyRN | Jan 12, 2009 10:25:59 AM
Great Comment Family Nutritionist! I'd like to know the answer to that also.
Posted by: Evelyn Tribole, MS, RD | Jan 12, 2009 11:28:57 AM
Over half of the salmon sold globally is farm-raised.
A recent study (Foran et al*) evaluated two metric tons of salmon from around the world, including wild salmon and Atlantic salmon from 51 farms in six countries. Farmed salmon had nearly 7 times the amount of omega-6 fat. I doubt the USDA analyzed this many samples of salmon.
Here’s the Foran data on omega-6 fat content (based on 3 ounces of salmon):
- Farmed Atlantic salmon= 880 milligrams
-Wild salmon =128 milligrams
Evelyn Tribole, MS, RD
Author of Ultimate Omega-3 Diet
*Foran et al.Quantitative Analysis of the Benefits and Risks of Consuming Farmed and Wild Salmon.
J Nutr.135: 2639-2643, 2005
Posted by: Family Nutritionist | Jan 12, 2009 12:20:49 PM
The new USDA figures are based on TWO samples of Salmon, Atlantic, farmed, raw. The work was completed in 2006 and reported in a poster presentation at Experimental Biology 2007 ( http://www.ars.usda.gov/SP2UserFiles/Place/12354500/Articles/EB07_Salmon.pdf ). The poster does not report omega-6 fatty acids.
Why would the USDA make such a striking change based on only TWO samples? Do they have reason to believe that all farmed salmon is the same?
Posted by: Nancy | Jan 12, 2009 12:22:11 PM
The important thing is to know your fish monger and buy from a reliable source -- the big box stores and chains that sell very cheap farmed salmon are not generally buying from the best farms, only the cheapest. We are in the retail fish business in the Chicago area, and we know all of our suppliers, only buying from those that follow best environmental practices. A good fish monger can tell you where the fish is from and what it ate! Just Ask!!
Posted by: family nutritionist | Jan 12, 2009 12:52:07 PM
What effect do "best environmental practices" have on omega-6/omega-3 ratios?
Posted by: Family Nutritionist (http://familynutritionist@blogspot.com) | Jan 13, 2009 11:22:38 AM
If my fishmonger tells me what that farm-raised fillet has been eating, what's the right answer? What feed makes an anti-inflammatory salmon?
Posted by: Jana | Jan 14, 2009 1:30:29 AM
I buy wild-only salmon. There is now way I would touch farm-raised.
Following is a brief list of health reasons why farm-raised is NOT good for you. You can view the entire brochure here: http://www.davidsuzuki.org/files/PSF_Salmon_Brochure.pdf
1. Farmed salmon are given antibiotics that are also used to treat human illness. This contributes to the dangerous increase of antibiotic-resistant disease worldwide.
2. Farmed salmon receive more antibiotics by weight than any other livestock.
3. Farmed salmon contain higher levels of unhealthy saturated fats and lower levels of beneficial omega-3 fatty acids. A U.S. Agriculture Department study found farmed Atlantic salmon contain 70 percent more fat than wild Atlantic salmon because of the high fat content in their feed.
4. Farmed Atlantic salmon contain 200 percent more fat than wild Pacific pink or chum salmon.
Mr, Suzuki got his information from these reliable sources:
World Health Organization (WHO)(1999). Food Safety Issues Associated with Products From Aquaculture. WHO Technical Report #883, Geneva.
U.S. Food and Drug Administration Nutrition Database (www.fda.gov/).
I think this is enough explanation.
Posted by: Jana | Jan 14, 2009 1:41:57 AM
I originally thought my first post was enough, but I changed my mind when I thought about how uninformed this article is. This post links even more sources of information on why farm-raised is not a good idea.
http://www.deliciousorganics.com/Controversies/wildvsfarmfish.htm
Would you like some PCBs and antibiotics, maybe lice (farm-raised has that problem too) with your increased omega-3s from your disgusting farm-raised salmon? Maybe some mercury too... anyone planning on having kids in the future?
Don't take my word or anyone else's word. Do your own research. It's your health.
Posted by: Dave | Jan 24, 2009 12:21:07 AM
Is Monica that desperate to keep her blog alive by ignoring any scientific info and changing her mind at a whim based on scanty info?
Obviously!
Caveat Emptor!
Posted by: Nicole | Feb 3, 2009 6:15:42 PM
These comments by Jana and Dave are absolutely uninformed. The salmon farms Jana speaks of do exist, but any reputable fishmonger would not purchase fish from these farms. Talk to your fish supplier, see if they know where their seafood comes from. There have been vast improvements in aquaculture over the past couple years. Land based tanks allow for water purity to be constantly monitored. When there is low pen-density and no overcrowding, which in reputable and environmental farms exists, there are no need for hormones or antibiotics, and the fish do not contract lice or fungus. Depleting wild stocks of salmon is inhumane. Farmed salmon had higher amounts of omega 6s because they were being fed corn and grain, just like feedlot cattle, and this was depleting their omega 3 content and boosting the omega 6 content. Aquaculturists now know to mimic the natural diet of the fish being farmed, which means the farmed fish have a similar diet to wild fish, and in fact, since omega 3s are stored in fat, the omega 3 content of farmed fish is higher (farmed fish do contain more overall fats) than that of some wild fish.
From Calgary Herald, 5/14/08
Comparing DHA and EPA levels (in mg):
*3,650 (atlantic salmon, farmed, 6 oz. cooked)
*3,000 (wild salmon, cooked, 6 oz)
So - save the wild salmon, let their fisheries return to some normalcy. Get to know your seafood supplier and where their seafood comes from. Wild caught is no better if it coming from polluted waters.
