The term pescetarian was coined in the early 1990s and is a combination of the words fish and vegetarian.
Indicatively, this type of food is close to the area of vegetarian and vegan diets because it shares some points, and describes people who choose to follow a diet without meat, but include fish and seafood.
would increase. The first effect would be to keep the weight stable and, in some cases, promote weight loss.
Other insights have established that pescetarians would have a lower risk of developing diabetes (4.8%), compared to omnivores at (7.6%), as well as developing heart disease than normal meat eaters (22%).
Another diet that promises many health benefits is the green Mediterranean diet.
Among the healthiest fish, tuna and salmon.
Environment protection
Livestock farming has a high environmental cost, so much so that according to the United Nations it contributes 15% of all carbon emissions produced by man.
In contrast, the production of fish and seafood has a "lower carbon footprint than the production of any type of animal meat or cheese."
A 2014 study calculated that the diets of fish eaters caused 46% fewer greenhouse gas emissions than those of people who ate at least one serving of meat a day.
The fact remains that, in recent years, other types of negative impact on the environment attributable to fish farming have been recognized; first of all, the excessive fishing of krill for fodder purposes - a planktonic fraction essential to the marine food chain.
Ethical reasons
Ethics is usually one of the main reasons people choose to become vegetarians and this philosophy can be extended to pescetarians as well.
Specifically, the reasons for this choice are:
- opposition to the slaughter of animals for nutritional purposes;
- willingness not to support intensive livestock farming that raise livestock in sometimes inhumane conditions *;
- consideration of the production of grain for animal feed an unfair use of land and resources.
* Also in this case, this is an objectively incorrect motivation. Although "ethics is a" very personal issue ", it is impossible not to notice that fish farms can also be intensive and, on the whole, much more questionable than animal farms.
Arousing less empathy on the other hand, even if grown in terrible environments, fishery products do not seem to worry most consumers, who instead seem perplexed about the wholesomeness of what they will eat.
and cereal products,Conversely, pescetarians don't eat:
- beef,
- chicken,
- pork meat,
- Lamb,
- Turkey,
- game.
The addition of fish and seafood such as crustaceans and molluscs, however, can make up for these deficiencies and provide nutrients and a variety of benefits.
More Omega-3s are stored
Fish is the best way to get omega-3 fatty acids.
Some plant foods, including walnuts and flax seeds, contain alpha-linolenic acid (ALA), a type of omega-3 fat. However, this type of ALA is not easily converted into eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) in the body. DHA and EPA have additional health benefits, helping not only the heart, but also brain function and mood, and oily fish such as salmon and sardines contain it in large quantities.
Increase your protein intake
Eating the right amount of daily protein can be difficult if you only use vegetable ones, especially if you don't want to overdo it with extra carbohydrates or fats.
In this mission, therefore, the fish comes to the aid, which offers an excellent source of lean protein.
Seafood is rich in other nutrients
In addition to omega-3s and protein, seafood has many other nutrients.
For example, oysters are extremely rich in vitamin B12, zinc and selenium; mussels of vitamin B12 and selenium, manganese and the rest of the B vitamins and some varieties of white fish such as cod and flounder are an extremely lean source of protein.
the high intake of elements present in some fish such as mercury and other toxins.In particular, although children and pregnant or breastfeeding women are not absolutely forbidden, it would be better not to abuse tilefish, swordfish, royal mackerel and albacore tuna.
