Celebrate National Seafood Month & Support Your Health

We have asked the Seafood Nutrition Partnership to be a guest on our blog for National Seafood Month to provide information on the amazing benefits of seafood.

Hi! Seafood Nutrition Partnership here having fun celebrating National Seafood Month with lots of delicious, simple and healthy seafood dishes. We’re partnering with about 50 groups across the country – including nonprofits like ourselves, fishermen and farmers, retailers, sustainability organizations and the government – to help Americans stay healthy.

The benefits of seafood are big! Fish and shellfish supply the nutrients, vitamins and omega-3s essential for strong bones, brain development, and healthy heart and immune systems. October is National Seafood Month and a perfect opportunity to celebrate with delicious fish while supporting your health. The American Heart Association and American Academy of Pediatrics both recommend we eat two servings of seafood per week, so let’s take this suggestion to “heart” and try a new fish dish or two this month.

Good nutrition is especially important right now as it is essential to support a strong immune system. Seafood, both fish and shellfish, provides essential nutrients to the body that support immune health, such as selenium, iron and zinc. Zinc helps the immune system fight off invading bacteria and viruses, and is found in abundance in oysters, while other fish and shellfish are good sources, as well.

We all have a lot on our minds right now, and seafood has the vitamins needed to boost your mood and calm your mind – as well as help you get a better night’s sleep! When we are depressed or anxious, we naturally resist self-care, including preparing and eating nutritious food. But good nutrition is more important than ever. Research shows that our daily food choices influence our mental health, and evidence is strong that seafood is brain food.

Here are some fun facts about our favorite offerings here at Rubio’s:

• Salmon is helping fight American’s Vitamin D deficiency with an excellent source of your daily “sunny D.”* This bone-strengthening and immune-boosting vitamin is naturally present in very few foods.
• Shrimp and mahi mahi are delicious sources of lean protein and are great sources of selenium (90% and 85% DV, respectively), which supports immune responsiveness and boosts your metabolism.
• Alaska Pollock boasts a whopping 23 grams of protein in just 111 calories, and even though it’s so lean, has more than 500mg of essential omega-3 fatty acids EPA+DHA per serving.

Many people report they feel overwhelmed or intimidated by cooking fish. So, other than the many delicious menu items Rubio’s has on its menu, here is a simple recipe you can make at home. And please visit us at eatseafoodamerica.com, where you can find tips on how to buy and cook seafood and find hundreds of recipes to please all taste buds.

* All nutritional data is based on 100 gram servings with information obtained from USDA’s FoodData Central (fdc.nal.usda.gov)

 

Sheet Pan Chipotle Shrimp Fajitas (feeds 3-4 people)

Ingredients:

• 8-10 flour or corn tortillas
• ¼ cup fresh cilantro, chopped
• Guacamole and salsa (Optional)

Veggies

• 1 red onion, thinly sliced
• 1 yellow bell pepper, thinly sliced
• 1 red bell pepper, thinly sliced
• 1 sweet potato, peeled and cut into thin half moon slices
• 3 tbsp olive oil or avocado oil
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• ¾ tsp salt
• 1/8 tsp black pepper

Chipotle Shrimp

• 1 lb. medium peeled and deveined shrimp
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1/2 tsp chipotle powder
• 1/8 tsp salt
• 1 garlic clove, minced

To Prepare:

1. Preheat the oven to 425°F.
2. In a large mixing bowl, mix together the red onion, yellow bell pepper, red bell pepper, sweet potato, olive oil, garlic, salt and pepper. Spread out on a parchment or foil lined baking sheet and bake for 20 minutes, flipping half way through.
3. In the same bowl, mix together the shrimp, olive oil, chipotle powder, salt and garlic.
4. Remove the veggie from the oven and push the veggies to the side of the baking sheet. Add the marinated shrimp and bake for an additional 5 minutes.
5. Serve with warm tortillas, guacamole and salsa.

 

 

References:

1. https://professional.heart.org/en/science-news/seafood-long-chain-n3-polyunsaturated-fatty-acids-and-cardiovascular-disease
2. https://www.healthychildren.org/English/news/Pages/AAP-Says-US-Children-Not-Eating-Enough-Seafood.aspx
3. https://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/Zinc-HealthProfessional/#h3
4. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4013386/
   Hansen AL, Dahl L, Olson G, et al. Fish consumption, sleep, daily functioning, and heart rate variability. J Clin Sleep Med. 2014;10(5):567-575. doi:10.5664/jcsm.3714
5. https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/fsn3.1050
   Wu W, Zhao A, Szeto IM, et al. Diet quality, consumption of seafood and eggs are associated with sleep quality among Chinese urban adults: A cross-sectional study in eight cities of China. Food Sci Nutr. 2019;7(6):2091-2102. Published 2019 May 15. doi:10.1002/fsn3.1050
6. Kids Sleep: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-017-17520-w
   Liu J, et al. The mediating role of sleep in the fish consumption – cognitive functioning relationship: a cohort study. Scientific Reports. 2017;7(17961).
7. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7400921/
   AND
   https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7246001/
8. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5758946/