In an article in the December journal of the American Dietetic Association, editor Elaine R. Morgan reports on the recommendation to have two servings weekly of fatty fish.

The fat in fish contains omega-3 fatty acids, which reduce the risk of heart disease, kidney-related diseases and skin disorders.

The report further states that pregnant women and children benefit from omega-3 fatty acids in that they are important for the development of brain and nerve cells, including the eyes.

The recommendation does not mean that you should add more fat to the diet but rather that you should substitute another source of protein in the diet with fish twice a week to reduce the amount of saturated fat in the diet. Fish contains highly unsaturated fat.

The following list was compiled by the National Fisheries Institute. It is a listing of fish and shellfish according to omega-3 content in a 3 1/2 ounce serving.

Most (More than 1.0 gram) Anchovy, Atlantic bluefish, Atlantic salmon, coho salmon, herring, mackerel, pilchards, pink salmon, sablefish, sardines, sockeye salmon, spiny dogfish, and whitefish.

Moderate (0.5 to 0.9 gram) chum, salmon, pompano, rainbow trout, shark, smelt, spot, striped bass, swordfish, Pacific oysters, and squid.

Least (less than 0.5 gram) carp, channel catfish, cod, flounder, grouper, haddock, Pacific halibut, mahi mahi, ocean perch, orange roughy, pike, pollock, rockfish, sea bass, snapper, whiting, clams, crab, crayfish, Eastern oysters, lobsters, mussels, scallops and shrimp.

Mm-format by Leonard Smith