From the nutrition chapter of latest (2006) edition of The Joy of Cooking (p. 5):
We get essential polyunsaturated fats from corn oil, soybean oil, seeds, nuts, whole grains, and fatty fish, such as salmon and tuna. The omega-3 fats are a particularly important type of polyunsaturated fat. They help with everything from normal brain and nerve development to healthy functioning of the immune system, heart, and blood vessels.
This is misleading because the first sentence lumps together foods high in omega-6 (such as corn oil and nuts) and foods high in omega-3 (fatty fish), even though omega-6 and omega-3 probably have opposite effects when consumed in the amounts we consume them. (We consume too much omega-6, too little omega-3.) The Israeli Paradox is reason to think that high amounts of omega-6 are harmful. I don’t know if omega-6 fats make one’s brain work worse but I’m sure they don’t make it work better, as omega-3 fats do.
The nutrition section of The Joy of Cooking was reviewed by Walter Willett, the Harvard epidemiologist. This blanket statement about the goodness of polyunsaturated fats is similar to what he wrote in Eat, Drink, and Be Healthy.
My earlier post on the Israeli Paradox.
Hello,
This is a mistake that I also see pretty often. People love their deep fried things so the more you can boost up poly fats, the better.
Is it true that if you fry fish, it loses its nutrients? Does that also mean you don’t get the benefits from the omega 3 with fried fish? Just wondering since this came up in a recent discussion about the fillet-o-fish at mcdonalds
Thanks,
George Christodoulou
I too wonder about the effect of cooking on omega-3. I hope to find out with my new reaction-time tests — compare raw salmon with cooked salmon, for example.