Smoked Salmon

Omega 3 is one of the best things that we can eat. Snip -

The human diet today is vastly different from that of our ancestors. For early mankind, hunting, fishing and food gathering were a survival imperative and as a consequence human beings evolved      on 'natural' foods supplying a diet that was low in total fat and saturated fat, but contained a balance of omega-6 and omega-3 essential fatty acids.
            
For most of the time humans have been on earth we have eaten foods containing omega-6s and omega-3s in a ratio of about 2:1 In recent centuries, the emphasis gradually moved away from hunting/gathering towards cultivating the land, but the greatest diet changes have occurred in the past 50 or so years.

As a result of our increasing reliance on cereals, processed foods and, most significantly, vegetable oils and spreads, compounded by a decreased consumption of oily fish and grass-fed meat, today        this ratio is about 10-20:1. Modern Western diets are therefore deficient in omega-3 fatty acids compared with the diet on which humans evolved and their genetic patterns were established.

When I was a boy, I was given Cod Liver oil at school every week. In addition, I regularly ate sardines, kippers, herring roe and mackerel. Fish that had Omega 3 fatty acids were an essential part of most people's diet then. None of these may seem like a great food choice to you and most people today hardly have any Omega 3 in their diet.  A few may take Omega 3 pills

I no longer eat many sardines - but I do eat a lot - a lot of smoked salmon. I eat only the very best Smoked Salmon which is produced locally on PEI by Kim Dormaar.

For me Kim's salmon is my special treat for myself - it's my personal luxury. I also find that salmon makes a great gift for the friend who is impossible to buy for. So what is good smoked salmon and why should you believe me?

Now Kim and his team have a blog. Here you can find out all about how he handles and sources his fish. You can find great recipes. You can follow the year long ritual of the smokehouse. You can buy his salmon and many other smoked fish delicacies.

Omega-3 fatty acids are considered essential fatty acids, which means that they are essential to human health but cannot be manufactured by the body. For this reason, omega-3 fatty acids must be obtained from food. Omega-3 fatty acids can be found in fish and certain plant oils. It is important to maintain an appropriate balance of omega-3 and omega-6 (another essential fatty acid) in the diet as these two substances work together to promote health. Also known as polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs), omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids play a crucial role in brain function as well as normal growth and development.

Extensive research indicates that omega-3 fatty acids reduce inflammation and help prevent certain chronic diseases such as heart disease and arthritis. These essential fatty acids are highly concentrated in the brain and appear to be particularly important for cognitive and behavioral function. In fact, infants who do not get enough omega-3 fatty acids from their mothers during pregnancy are at risk for developing vision and nerve problems.

As mentioned previously, it is very important to maintain a balance between omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids in the diet. Omega-3 fatty acids help reduce inflammation and most omega-6 fatty acids tend to promote inflammation. An inappropriate balance of these essential fatty acids contributes to the development of disease while a proper balance helps maintain and even improve health. A healthy diet should consist of roughly one to four times more omega-6 fatty acids than omega-3 fatty acids. The typical American diet tends to contain 11 to 30 times more omega-6 fatty acids than omega-3 fatty acids and many researchers believe this imbalance is a significant factor in the rising rate of inflammatory disorders in the United States.

In contrast, however, the Mediterranean diet consists of a healthier balance between omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids and many studies have shown that people who follow this diet are less likely to develop heart disease. The Mediterranean diet does not include much meat (which is high in omega-6 fatty acids) and emphasizes foods rich in omega-3 fatty acids including whole grains, fresh fruits and vegetables, fish, olive oil, garlic, as well as moderate wine consumption.