Whether you’re making an effort to eat healthier or you are constantly searching for ways to improve your already stellar health regimen, one of the easiest ways to upgrade your diet is by eating more seafood. Seafood not only contains healthy proteins, but it also contains a lot of omega-3 fatty acids, which have the ability to decrease your chances of heart disease, depression, rheumatoid arthritis, and even Alzheimer’s disease. Seafood also contains docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), which helps protect both your heart and your brain. This superfood can literally be life saving and is more nutritionally valuable than other proteins. No matter if you eat your seafood frozen, canned, or in a restaurant, it’s clear that the benefits are numerous.

Seafood Live Longer Infographic

Our Health Could Stand to be Better

We could all stand to do much better when it comes to taking care of our bodies. Heart disease is the number one killer of women globally, and heart attacks and strokes are responsible for 30% of the world’s deaths. In the United States alone, stroke and heart attacks cause over 800,000 deaths per year. With readily available and cheap processed foods regularly incorporated into our diets as well as a lack of exercise, Americans are on the fast track to being very unhealthy. However, becoming aware of these statistics is just the first step in taking charge of our health and our bodies.

Though there is no “quick fix” to getting healthy, increasing your consumption of seafood can actually make a dramatic difference in your health.

Eat Seafood For a Healthier Life

Besides being a delicious and versatile protein, seafood is a great food to introduce into your diet. The USDA health guidelines suggest that you consume seafood twice a week, but unfortunately only 1 in 5 Americans actually follow through with this advice. In fact, people consume 10 times more sugar than seafood annually (consuming around 140 pounds of sugar versus 14.4 pounds of seafood).

However, when you follow these USDA seafood intake recommendations, the health benefits are clear. Eating eight ounces of seafood per week will reduce of dying from heart disease by 36 percent, and seniors who regularly incorporate seafood into their diet live on average about 2.2 years longer than those who do not.

Incorporating seafood into your weekly menu is also beneficial for pregnant moms who are trying to stay healthy for baby. It turns out that eating eight to 12 ounces of seafood per week while pregnant can improve a baby’s cognitive development, eyesight, and even increase their IQ (talk about a super food!).

Great for Busy Families

In addition to all of the health benefits, preparing seafood is also perfect for busy families who want to cook healthy meals for themselves and their children. Seafood can be prepared in numerous, delicious ways to suit any taste buds. Best of all, most seafood dishes can be cooked in less than 15 minutes, which means less waiting on your food to cook all the way through and no more second guessing on whether or not your chicken or beef is done in the middle.

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