Eating fish provides your body with many of the nutrients it needs to function properly. Minerals, vitamins, and protein are only a few of the things you can get from eating fish. Moreover, it is known that the fatty fish out there are the healthiest ones to eat.
Vitamin D and omega-3 fatty acids, which help your brain function properly and reduce the risk of many diseases, including heart diseases, are two more things you can benefit from when eating a well-cooked fish.
However, not all of the fish out in the world are safe for you to eat. While some may require special cooking for them to be safely eaten, plenty of them must not get too close to you or your mouth. That’s why, today, we will be talking about five of the most dangerous fish to eat.
Swordfish
Also known as broadbills, the swordfish are predatory fish. Of course, this fish’s main feature is the long and flat bill – hence the name of broadbills. They are commonly found in the temperate and tropical parts of the Pacific, Indian, and Atlantic oceans. In terms of length and weight, they usually grow up to around 9.8 feet long and around 1,400 lb.
They would be safe to eat, but because of the mercury levels they build throughout their life, it is recommended that adults eat only one serving per month, while kids and women should avoid eating swordfish at all.
The mercury in their bodies gets to such a high level because of the many sea critters they eat – which contain mercury and are also sometimes contaminated by it. Naturally, eating a type of fish that contains mercury will lead to our contamination as well.
Chilean Sea Bass
Also known as the Patagonian toothfish, this species is being fished for so much that it now face extinction. Normally, it is a deep-sea predator, but because of its taste, seafood distributors have started to sell it more and more in recent years.
Despite everything we’ve mentioned before, this is one fish that you should avoid eating. It is said to have one of the highest mercury levels, mainly because of the sea critters it it eats while at the bottom of the sea. It is highly recommended that you would pass on such a meal and go for something else than risking mercury poisoning.
You can just take your fishing rod and reel and fish what you are going to cook – specifically common fish that are not so dangerous for your body.
Eel
One of the reasons you should avoid eating this fish it’s because it has been overfished and thus slowly leading the species to extinction. Furthermore, some seafood advisors have recommended people to avoid sushi that has Eel in it.
This is because, throughout their lives, Eels absorb contaminants that are not good for your body. Some of these contaminants are flame retardants and endocrine disruptors like PCBs. For example, an advice that is to be taken into account which was given by the state of New Jersey is not to consume Eel more than one time a year – and this is mainly recommended for grown men.
Because rivel Eels get so contaminated, mainly due to the fact that they absorb the formerly mentioned contaminants so fast, women and children should definitely avoid eating this type of fish.
Furthermore, Eels contribute to the well-being of water ecosystems. They are responsible for the spreading of mussel populations which are, in turn, able to filter the waters in a natural way. So if you’ve thought of fishing Eel, it’s recommended that you put your fishing hat back in the closet and choose a healthier type of fish.
Shark
Even though they are considered delicacies, especially in Asia, there are two main reasons you should avoid eating shark meat at all costs. First of all, since they rank high on the marine food chain, it means that they eat a lot of other fish – and this means that their mercury intake is very high.
Naturally, the food chain starts at the smallest form of life which is eaten by a larger one, and so on until the shark eats whatever is beneath it on the food chain. This results in sharks eating almost all of the mercury that has gathered in time in the body of the fish they are eating.
So, the first and main reason is the high level of mercury – you risk contamination if you have more servings than needed. Then, of course, we have the risk of extinction.
Sharks, especially their fins, are in high demand for Asian cuisine; then, we have tuna and swordfish fishers that accidentally catch sharks which are then simply discarded, because they are considered waste.
Since they take quite a while to mature and have few offsprings, sharks are on their way to extinction.
Tilapia
This type of fish is one of the most widely consumed in America. But, of course, it’s one dangerous fish to eat due to the many diseases they can cause to your body.
According to a study, eating a lot of Tilapia will eventually cause highly inflammatory diets. Furthermore, this fish has a ratio of low omega-3 and high omega-6 which can be dangerous for people that are suffering from asthma, arthritis, heart diseases, and autoimmune disease symptoms. This is because these illnesses are prone to an exaggerated inflammatory response, which – as we mentioned – can be caused by eating Tilapia.
Another study has found that Tilapia have a long-chain of omega-6 fatty acids – to be more specific, this means 80% more than your basic hamburger, pork bacon, and doughnuts. It’s very clear while it is recommended that you avoid eating Tilapia.
As you have seen, most of the fish that are deemed safe to eat are not actually that safe, mainly because of the high mercury levels in their bodies. Mercury contamination is a serious condition and should be treated carefully – that’s why, before deciding that you want to eat fish for dinner, you should get informed and see which type of fish would be the best and healthiest pick.
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