If you are worried about your health and don’t want to blitz your body with all the health pills and nutrition supplements that doctors and so-called health experts are bombarding you with, then stop right there. You can add one food to your diet that will tick all these boxes – sardines.
That’s right, these tiny fish are good for so many reasons. Not only do they give you plenty of amino acids for a healthy brain and reduce levels of inflammation in your muscles, but they also help increase bone strength and joint suppleness. This fish is quite simply the best thing for you and your joints.
This fish has an amazingly low level of calories, so if you want a delicious and tasty alternative to your usual fatty snacks, then we would highly recommend sardines. This is much more healthy than pilchards or herrings and can be added to a wide range of sandwiches, salads and even pizza if you’re treating yourself.
So where can you pick up one of these salty fish? What nutritional features does a sardine have to give you that super health boost all through the day? How many sardines do you need to get in your diet? How does the sardine affect your body and what physical changes can you expect to have?
Well, if you want all your salty sea fish questions answers and then some, we have everything that you need to convince you to get this delicious fish into your diet. We’ll give you a complete breakdown of sardines and how they affect your body, as well as where you can find some of this delicious and super healthy fish.
Sardines – The Cold, Hard and Salty Facts
So, for those of you who may never have seen a sardine or might have trouble calling it into your mind – they are small brown fish in much the same shape as a herring or pilchard. They are very oily and are a very popular topping on pizza. You can find it swimming in various regions such as the Pacific Ocean or the Mediterranean.
This fish is very salty, which explains why human beings find it so delicious. However, this is raised and fed on good salt from the sea, so you won’t have to worry about loading your diet with them. This is a food that is chock-full of omega-3 fatty acids, which is very good for the health of your brain as well as your joints.
But the nutrient content doesn’t stop there. You can have plenty of Omega-3 fatty oils, as well as vitamin B12, proteins and other essential nutrients. You can often see health food experts associating sardines with increased bone density and much more rapid weight loss.
You can purchase these fresh from the market if you are looking to gain as much of the natural benefits from them as possible. However, they are more commonly found canned at the supermarket. Even when they are canned, you can still expect this fish to have all the nutrient content that it would in the ocean.
The reason why the sardine is sought-after by a lot of health food nuts is that they have all these vitamins and nutrients along with a great flavor palette. They go well in most dishes, including salads, pasta and pizza.
The Nutritional Benefits Of Sardines
Okay, let’s go past the hype and look at some of the raw facts. Here is the entire nutritional profile of your average sardine:
- Calories: 191
- 22.7 grams of protein
- 10.5 grams of fat
- 8.2 micrograms of vitamin B12
- 48.5 micrograms of selenium
- 250 international units of vitamin D
- 451 milligrams of phosphorus
- 351 milligrams of calcium
- 4.8 milligrams of niacin
- 2.7 milligrams of iron
- 365 milligrams of potassium
- 35.9 milligrams of magnesium
- 0.2 milligrams of copper
- 1.9 milligrams of vitamin E
- 0.2 milligrams of vitamin B6
- 1.2 milligrams of zinc
As you can see from this quite lengthy list, this fish is packed full of juices and is very delicious. If you introduce this fish into your diet, you might be able to notice your cognitive functions improving within a few months.
Now, let’s have an in-depth breakdown of the nutritional benefits of this food and how you can expect your condition to improve within a few weeks of eating it.
Sardines Are Very High In Anti-Inflammatory Omega-3 Fatty Acids
This is quite simply one of the best natural sources of fatty acids on the face of the planet. As with all fish, this is very oily, but they are good oils, with one single 3.75 ounces of sardine offering you 1,300 micrograms of omega-3 oils.
A sardine will give you both EPA and DHA oil, which are two types of fatty acid that are essential for the body to reduce inflammation and will overall boost your health, increase the operation of your brain and reduce the chances of your developing a long-term disease. Scientists have found that eating more of this fish will reduce the chances of your getting Alzheimers.
Natural health experts are looking into the use of fish like sardines in the treatment of chronic illnesses. This can help you to reduce the effects of anxiety and depression, with studies showing that both of these are radically reduced when you’ve introduced this oil into your diet.
The sardine is also used to combat ADHD and certain types of cancer, especially ones that are located in the brain. But the health benefits of omega-3 do not stop there, sardines can also help you to reduce the negative effects of cholesterol, arthritis, infertility and heart disease. This will overall lower your cholesterol and improve the function of your heart.
When it comes to maintaining a healthy heart, having sardines in your diet is quite simply a must. It is great for keeping your heart beating regularly and giving you everything that you need to lower your stress and cholesterol levels – two big factors that contribute to heart disease.
The two important types of omega-3 fatty acids, EPA and DHA, are only found in fish, with types such as ALA most commonly found in walnuts, flaxseed and chia seeds. You need to get all three types of omega-3 to ensure that your body is working to the best of its abilities.
Sardines Are Extremely Dense In Nutrients
When it comes to having vitamin B12, vitamin D, calcium and selenium in your diet, then you can look at no better source than a sardine. Not only this, but as you might have already seen from the list above, they come very high in phosphatidylserine, phosphorus, iron, copper, potassium and various other B vitamins.
These nutrients play a key role in maintaining the health of different parts of the body, including the heart, metabolism, cellular functions and will boost certain deficiencies in people such as iron, calcium and phosphorus. If you have noticed that you are feeling tired or lethargic throughout the day, then we would recommend that you try eating more sardines and see if this makes any difference.
Sardines Are One Of The Best Sources Of Vitamin B12
This is one of the most important vitamins for your body, it helps to preserve brain, nerve and blood cell function. It will keep your energy levels up throughout the day. People who experience a deficiency in this vitamin will notice that they are experiencing depressed moods and feelings of lethargy.
If you are lacking this vitamin in your diet, then you can expect to have impaired cognitive function and fatigue almost all of the time. You can also experience nerve damage, as well as difficulty getting oxygen into your bloodstream.
However, you won’t need to worry about this, as just one sardine will boost your vitamin B12 levels by 137%. This is a testament to how amazing this little fish really is. Getting just a little bit of this in your diet will put a spring back in your step, boosting your energy levels and making you that little more focussed and alert in your day-to-day life.
Sardines Have High Levels Of Selenium
What is selenium? Well, this is a crucial mineral that you’ll need for antioxidant properties, which is required for creating and converting glutathione, which is an antioxidant that helps protect your body against plenty of illness and diseases. This mineral also helps to prevent oxidative damage to the body and fights off diseases such as free radicals.
This disease will also help regulate metabolism, improving the rate at which your cells reproduce. It will also help you detoxify your body by taking the stress off your digestive system. It will improve the regulation of cells in your liver and thyroid, which need a certain amount of endocrines with which to function.
If you have a deficiency in selenium, then you can expect to experience decreased immune function, which will see you getting ill an awful lot more than you usually would. You might also experience reproductive problems, mood changes and increased chances of heart disease. Getting just one sardine in your diet every day will change all of that.
This Increases Your Bone Health
There is seemingly no end to the number of health benefits that the sardine can provide for you, including increasing your bone density. If you are looking for something that will give you a solid bone structure, then the sardine will be one of the best things that you can get for your broken bones.
If you are prone to brittle bones, then increasing your sardine intake will strengthen them and protect you against breakages and fractures. This will help you to regulate the bone tissue and help its metabolism, which in turn will give you everything that you need for the formation of new bone tissue.
Sardines are also very high in vitamin D, which is one of those miracle ingredients that will provide you with everything that you need for a solid bone structure. This is also a very good vitamin for the skin, which is also a great mood booster for your diet.
This Will improve Your General Mental Health
This will help you to defend against many different types of mood disorders, especially anxiety and depression. This is due to the high concentration of omega-3 oils, which improves the functionality of your brain as well as your motor skills. There have been many studies to prove that omega-3 is massively beneficial for mood improvement.
These essential fats play a huge role in regulating the mood hormones that flow through your brain. The brain is largely fat, so having plenty of lubricant for it will undoubtedly give your brain plenty of functionality. So if you find yourself getting down more often than not, then we would recommend you add this salty fish to your diet.
Sardines Will Help You Control Your Blood Sugar
Because sardines are packed with so much salt, then you can be certain they will slow down the amount of sugar that is absorbed into your bloodstream. If you combine high protein and high fats, then your body reaches a state of ketosis, which will control the levels of sugar in your bloodstream and prevent sugar spikes.
This is a great food for anyone who has high metabolism or insulin resistance who has to closely monitor exactly how much sugar they ingest into their body. If you have foods with essential fats and protein, then you will automatically see an improvement in your health.
If you have an increased intake of sardines, then you can expect to see a dramatic reduction of sugar in your diet. This is very beneficial to patients with diabetes and has been shown to actually reverse the effects when coupled with specific dietary changes. So if you are looking for a substitute for your favorite sugary snack, then a sardine is the right way to go.
This Will Help You Lose Weight
These sardines are very high in protein and healthy fats, as we have already mentioned. Well, this combination will help you put your body in a state of what is called ketosis, which will help you to feel full throughout the day, keeping cravings at bay.
This will overall see a massive increase in the amount of fat that you’ll be burning off on a daily basis, coupled with the essential nutrients, this will give you a healthy diet all year round. The essential minerals such as omega-3 fatty acids and protein are exactly the combination that people will need to maintain a healthy weight.
This will not only help you lose weight, but it will help you shed the pound very quickly. If you really control the number of calories that you ingest, you can be sure that you’ll be able to lose around 2 pounds per week. This is great for anyone struggling with obesity who might not have the means to splash out on expensive diet plans.
Low In Pollutants
Very often fish will contain high levels of mercury, which will be very detrimental to your body toxicity levels. This is because they are very sustainable and are actually considered the bottom of the food chain, as they only really consume plankton and not very many toxic metals.
You should try and avoid eating fish such as swordfish and tilefish, as both of these animals contain really high levels of mercury. So a cheeky workaround is by consuming lots of sardines, which have all the mineral and vitamin benefits of other fish but hardly any of the pollutants.
Where Can You Pick Up Sardines?
These types of fish can be prepared in many different ways, and you can get them in many forms at your organic fish market. The most common method of getting sardines is in a can, either in oil or in their own natural brine. These sardines are often canned because it is very difficult to keep them preserved for too long.
There is a big difference between freshly caught sardines and canned sardines. Obviously, the nutritional content of fresh sardines will be a lot higher than the ones that come in tins. You should try and avoid farm-bred fish wherever you can, as they can often contain parasites that will severely damage your digestive system.
Fish farms also use pesticides and antibiotics to keep their contained fish healthy, although this will often have a detrimental effect on their health. A lot of fish manufacturers will also feed their sardines grains, which are designed to fill them up but not give them the best in terms of nutrient and vitamin content.
