You may have heard that you should include more seafood in your diet because it’s good for you, but many people don’t know just how many ways eating seafood can benefit your health. Read on to find the seven top reasons you should be including more seafood into your diet.

Seafood Reduces Your Risk of a Heart Attack

Heart disease is the leading cause of death amongst American adults. Luckily, eating a diet that’s rich in fish may help reduce your risk. Studies have shown that eating fatty fish just once or twice a week can reduce your risk of heart-related death by 36%.

Seafood is the Best Dietary Source of Vitamin D

You may know that you can get vitamin D from sun exposure, but during the long winter months it’s hard to catch some rays. That’s one of the main reasons that over 40% of the US population is deficient in vitamin D. If you’re inside a lot during the winter, eating a diet rich in fish can help reduce this deficiency. Fish is by far the best dietary source of vitamin D.

Choosing Seafood Over Beef Reduces Greenhouse Gases

Greenhouse gases are a hot topic lately, especially with all the buzz about global warming. But did you know that beef actually has a bigger carbon footprint than cars? By switching out beef for fish a couple times a week, you’ll be helping the environment and getting all sorts of healthy nutrients.

Seafood May Improve Your Sleep Quality

When you’re constantly connected, it can be hard to get a good night’s sleep. If you’re struggling to get enough sleep, you may want to stop by your local fishmonger before you reach for the sleeping pills. A recent 6-month study provided 95 middle-aged men with three servings of fish a week, and found improvements in both sleep and daily functioning. The cause is likely to be the vitamin D content and the omega-3 fatty acids.

Seafood Can Help Prevent Asthma in Children

Next time you make a fish dinner, be sure to save a bit for your little one! A Dutch study of over 7,000 infants found that eating fish at the right stage of development could reduce your child’s risk of developing asthma. Children who began eating fish between six and twelve months old were 36% less likely to develop asthma by age four than children who were fed fish before six months old, or after a year old.

Seafood Enhances Your Brainpower

If you’ve got an exam or an important presentation coming up, you may want to start loading your plate with seafood. Eating seafood that contains omega-3 fatty acids helps improve your memory and increase test scores.

Sustainably Farmed Seafood is Good for the Environment

With all the benefits that eating seafood can bring, it’s no wonder that seafood is in high demand. It’s important to be sure that you get your seafood from sustainable sources. Sustainable fish farms like Regal Springs are good for the environment because they don’t deplete the world’s population of wild seafood or use any harvesting techniques that could hurt the ecosystem.

Eating seafood has plenty of benefits for both you and the environment, and it’s tasty to boot! Now that you’ve got seven great reasons to eat more seafood, check out some of our favorite seafood recipes for inspiration and head over to your local fishmonger.

Photo credits: marco mayer / Shutterstock.com, Markus Spiske, Snufkin