The quick answer: This post provides tips on budget, how to get omega-3 in each meal, and good fat facts.
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I try to post twice a week: the Healthy Change for the week is the Monday post; the Thursday post expands the discussion with practical tips often influenced by your comments. (I apologize that due to other demands, this week’s Thursday post comes on Saturday.) I gauge the success of posts by your comments and I learned a few things from this week’s comments:
1. Amy noted that omega-3 fats have a “profoundly anti-depressant effect”.
2. Sacha observed that fish is “so darned expensive”.
3. McKenzie shared how “complicated it is to find healthy meat and eggs”.
4. Laura shared that “I stay full longer . . . when I have some good fat in my meals”.
5. Kristin said it wasn’t clear how to get omega-3 in every meal.
6. There were fewer comments than usual, which tells me this is a difficult subject to translate to daily living.
Thinking further on your comments:
Budget Wisdom: I had planned a post on value with the message that good food doesn’t cost more as long as you are organized (menu, shopping list) and willing to cook. Healthy food is actually a steal if you consider the cost of dealing with chronic diseases. Reader comments like Sacha’s have convinced me to include more frequent information on value under the heading Budget Wisdom.
So this is the first Budget Wisdom: Tips on affordable ways to get the omega-3s EPA (which works as an antidepressant and anti-inflammatory), and DHA (vital for brain and eye health). EPA and DHA are found together in animal products, which can be expensive. What is the weekly cost of DHA? It’s not easy to figure, as the government has not yet set a recommended intake. So I used a target of 0.1% of calories (attributed to a National Institute of Health workshop), which translates to 2 grams of DHA a week for the typical 2500 daily calorie diet.
Here is my horseback estimate for the weekly cost of getting your 2 grams of DHA from common sources:
• Eggs—it’s cheaper to buy the better eggs. Two grams of DHA from Costco’s high-omega eggs (flaxseed is added to the diet) will cost $12.00. The cost drops to $5.00 if you buy the Gold Circle eggs (algae is added to the diet). Ordinary eggs will deliver two grams for about $20.
• Fish—sardines are the best bargain. Wild salmon deliver two grams for about $7; farmed salmon for $5; and sardines, the best buy, for about $3 (canned). Tuna comes between sardines and salmon.
It’s best to get nutrients from a variety of sources so we shoot for two servings of fish a week (perhaps salmon one meal or shrimp in a salad, plus tuna in a sandwich). If we don’t get enough fish I take a fish oil pill; my guess is it’s better than nothing. And we include high-omega eggs in Saturday night omelets plus hard-boiled eggs in salads or as snacks. Following this plan, it costs only 5-6 dollars to get our weekly EFA and DHA.
Getting omega-3 in most meals: Credit for this goal goes to Susan Allport and her excellent book The Queen of Fats; Why Omega-3s Were Removed From the Western Diet and What We Can Do To Replace Them. The title pretty well explains the book, which I highly recommend. A simple rule from the book is that omega-3 fats are found in greens, while seeds are higher in omega-6. Simply put, we need to eat more greens and less foods processed from seeds (chips, crackers, cookies, seed oils).
Here is how we are trying to meet the goal of omega-3 in each meal in our home:
• Breakfast: The Breakfast Compote includes a generous serving of freshly ground flaxseed. (Don’t laugh, but when I cut up the strawberries I also include those little green leaves, a good omega-3 source.)
• Lunch: I do the worst here because I don’t want to stop and eat if I’m working on something. A favorite lunch for me is a slice of whole-wheat bread with tuna and/or cheese, topped with tomato and spinach.
• Snacks: I include walnuts and Brazil nuts, rich in omega-3.
• Dinner: We like to have a green salad with each meal plus a green vegetable. As noted above, we try to get two servings of fish weekly, as well as 2-3 servings of eggs (two eggs are a serving for me, one egg for my wife).
Good Fat Facts:
Fats have been roughed up in the media but they’re actually vital to health and beauty. Excuse me for noticing, but the higher fat content in women’s bodies (compared to men) makes for those lovely curves. The wonderful flavors and appealing smells of food are found in the fat. (Which is why low-fat foods were so unhealthy: they had to increase sugar and salt to retain taste appeal.) A low-fat diet is not a healthy diet. Natural fats—including butter and olive oil—have been safely enjoyed for centuries. Good fats make for good medicine. The omega-3 fats found in green plants (and animals that eat things green) reduce the risk of stroke and heart attack, lower blood pressure and inflammation, and improve the function of billions of (your) cell membranes. A final reminder: Eat more greens than seeds (especially seed oils) for a healthy omega 6:3 ratio.
Please comment on your favorite affordable fats.