Is Shellfish Good for You?
Once considered too high in cholesterol, it turns out that shellfish can be a delicious part of a heart-healthy diet.
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Doctors and other health experts used to warn people to steer away from clams, shrimp, crab and other shellfish because they were considered too high in cholesterol. However, it turns out that shellfish can still be a delicious part of a heart-healthy diet. Here’s what the latest research says.
What Is Shellfish?
Shellfish generally refers to clams, oysters, mussels, scallops, shrimp, crawfish, crab and lobster. Ranging in size, species and price, these sea creatures are served raw, steamed, grilled, baked or fried in various cuisines around the world. In general, shellfish are low in calories and contain protein as well as essential vitamins and minerals.
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Why Did Shellfish Get a Bad Reputation?
In the 1980s, U.S. dietary guidelines urged consumers to start zeroing in on and reducing intake of cholesterol in food. As a result, foods like shellfish and eggs made it on the do-not-eat list due to concerns of elevated blood cholesterol levels and increase risk for cardiovascular disease.
Evolving research in the field later revealed that foods in saturated fat are more likely to inflate markers for cardiovascular disease, most notably LDL cholesterol levels in the blood. In 2015, the limit of 300 milligrams of cholesterol per day was removed due to lack of scientific evidence that cholesterol from food was directly responsible for the increase in blood cholesterol levels.
While there are many foods that are high in both cholesterol and saturated fat, shellfish is not one of them. Instead of hyper focusing on every milligram of fat or cholesterol, guidance from the American Heart Association suggests that health experts give advice that focuses more on overall healthy dietary patterns. Such patterns can look like following the DASH or Mediterranean-style diets, which don’t require strict regimens or eliminate entire food groups.
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How Much Shellfish Should You Eat?
Most Americans do not consume the recommended two servings (or eight ounces) of seafood a week; shellfish can be an easy and convenient option to help meet this goal.
Shrimp, for example, thaws quickly from frozen and cooks just as fast. And while they may contain cholesterol, they’re low in saturated fat and contain a combination of nutrients that can be beneficial for heart health. A three-ounce portion of cooked shrimp contains 100 calories, 19 grams of protein, 1.4 grams of total fat and only 0.4 grams of saturated fat. Shrimp also contains important micronutrients including vitamins B6 and B12 as well as minerals potassium and magnesium.
Similarly, cooked clams, and many other shellfish, come ready-to-eat in tins. Three ounces of cooked clams contain 125 calories, 22 grams of protein, 1.7 grams of total fat with only 0.2 grams of saturated fat. Clams are also an excellent source of iron, potassium and vitamin B12.
Shellfish also contain small amounts of heart-healthy omega-3 fats, but not as much as salmon, tuna, sardines and other oilier types of seafood.
Of course, it’s common to dip shellfish, especially lobster, in melted butter which can certainly increase the unhealthy fats and negatively impact your diet. Instead, opt for freshly squeezed lemon juice or dip your shellfish pieces in a lower-fat sauce such as cocktail sauce or tzatziki.
Bottom Line: Steamed, baked or grilled shellfish make terrific lean protein options. Pass on gobs of butter and fried stuff that’s high in saturated fats and enjoy eight ounces of shellfish and other seafood per week as U.S. dietary guidelines and American Heart Association suggest.
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