Salmon Says, an Anti-Cancer Investigation What Kind is Healthiest? Part 6: Canned Salmon

Summary: Last chapter of this anticancer investigation, we learned that pink salmon–yes, the trash salmon you find in cans– is the cleanest species, and that you need to eat around 2 cans a week to get enough omega 3s.

That’s 8 patties, or one and change a day–a lot of fish for many folks. 

How about canned sockeye?  

Salmon Says, an Anti-Cancer Investigation What Kind is Healthiest? Part 5: Conclusions!

And the winner is?

At last!   Here are my recommendations for which salmon to choose and how much of it. If you’re in a rush, just skip down to the “Final Answer.”                                                    

Salmon Says, an Anti-Cancer Investigation: Part 4. How Healthy is Farmed Atlantic? Organic?

Photo courtesy of http://www.jitterycook.com

Now let’s turn this anti-cancer investigation to farmed Atlantic salmon and the countries that produce it: Norway, the largest producer, Scotland, Ireland and other European countries, Chile, Canada and to a smaller degree, the US. All of these countries are producing farmed Atlantic salmon, and unlike wild Pacific salmon, this choice is available year round.

How healthy—or not—is your farmed Atlantic salmon?  Remember we’re talking human health impact here. Its environmental impact gets plenty of attention elsewhere.        

Salmon Says, an Anti-Cancer Investigation: What Kind is Healthiest? Part 2. A Look at the Wild Pacific

Is wild Alaskan really the best?

With all the hoopla that surfaced in the mid 2000s about PCBs in farmed salmon plus the concerns about its environmental impact, health guru Dr. Andrew Weil and many others have been touting wild Alaskan salmon as your premium choice.  But is the answer really that simple? Bear with me; it’s taken 6 months of this anti-cancer investigating to find out.

Salmon Says, an Anti-Cancer Investigation: What Kind is Healthiest? Part 1. Meet the Many Species

Oh were it only so easy.  Figuring out which salmon to buy is more like attempting your first round of Trivial Pursuit—the Slovakian edition. You need lots of obscure background information to succeed. 

Anti-Cancer Foods: Grass Fed Beef

Anti-cancer Pasture Pie, our version of Shepherd’s.

Who said you can’t have a little beef every now and then on an anti-cancer diet? Just make sure it’s organic and grass-fed. 

Anti-Cancer Alert: Has your Sardine been Swimming in Japan?

Sardines, anchovies, mackerel and herring are all good sources of healthy omega 3 fats—small fish that feed low on the food chain, hence less susceptible to accumulating pollutants. But whoa!