How Much Omega 3 Fatty Acids Are You Getting When You Eat Common Seafoods?

There are several Omega 3 fatty acids.  The two Omega 3 fatty acids you want to consume for your health are:  DHA + EPA.   If you are currently taking fish oil I encourage you to look at your bottle of fish oil and calculate how much total DHA and EPA you are actually consuming.  There are many benefits to consuming the DHA + EPA...click here for information on how Omega 3s slow the aging process(one of the many benefits)!

The American Heart Association recommends 500 mg of DHA + EPA if you do not have heart disease.  If you have heart disease the American Heart Association recommends  consuming 1000 mg of DHA + EPA daily.  Many of my patients eat a variety of fish each week.  However, there are fish that have a high DHA + EPA content like Atlantic Salmon, Atlantic Herring, Tuna Bluefin, Mackerel (canned) with each of these containing 1000 mg of the DHA + EPA or more...... and then there are fish that have a low Omega 3 content (low DHA + EPA content).  These fish include Orange Roughy, Farmed Catfish, Shrimp, Tilapia and Mahi-Mahi.  Each of these contain 120 mg or less of DHA + EPA (your healthy Omega 3s). 

Since there is such a difference in healthy Omega 3 content of common seafoods I thought it would be helpful to post a list of Omega 3 content of these foods.  The listing is in mg of DHA + EPA content in a 3 oz serving.

Higher Omega 3s                     DHA + EPA
Atlantic Salmon, Farmed                 1825
Atlantic Herring                               1712
Atlantic Salmon                               1564
Tuna Bluefin                                    1279
Herring Pickled                                1181
Mackerel (canned)                           1046
Oysters (steamed)                              850
Sardines (canned in oil)                     835

Intermediate Omega 3s           DHA + EPA
Swordfish                                         764
Rainbow Trout, farmed                    744
Tuna, Albacore or White                 
 (canned in water)                             733
Sockeye Salmon                                673
Sea Bass                                            648
Salmon Pink                                      524
Crab Dungeness                                501
Crab King                                          351
Walleye                                             338

Lower Omega 3s                    DHA + EPA
Tuna, Light (canned in water)        230
Halibut                                            200
Northern Lobster (steamed)           165
Scallops (steamed)                         149
Cod                                                 135
Mahi-Mahi                                     118
Tilapia                                            115
Shrimp                                            87
Catfish, farmed                               76
Orange Roughy                               26

This information is taken from the USDA Nutrient Data Base for fish cooked with dry heat unless otherwise noted, and wild unless indicated as farmed.