The top fourteen foods

Good point, John! It is certainly true that the yoghurt recommended by mainstream “medical authorities” is always low-fat or even non-fat. The same is true for milk and even cheese. In fact, the food industry has come up with cheeses that are artificially low in fat just for this purpose!

There are two main problems with eating low-fat dairy products (three if you count their bland and uninspiring flavor!) First, the fat is where you find health-promoting fat-soluble vitamins A & D, and of course the saturated fat itself in milk is an important nutrient for the body – despite popular belief. Second, protein digestion requires the presence of vitamins A & D; therefore, eating lean sources of protein such as low-fat dairy depletes the body’s natural stores of these vitamins, because it will draw on its own supply of vitamin A & D to digest the protein.

Thanks again for pointing this out, John.

Chris

Hi julie,

Thanks for your comment. In general shellfish are among the most nutrient-dense foods available. Dr. Weston A. Price found in his epidemiological studies that the populations around the world that ate shellfish were among the healthiest he encountered.

Oysters are incredibly high in iron, with about a 100mg per gram. The next highest source is ginger at 7mg/g, and then beef and lamb at 6mg/g. So, one 100g serving of oysters a month gives you more iron than two equivalent servings of beef per week!

Oysters also supply iron, selenium and other trace minerals; fat-soluble vitamins A and D; and the long-chain omega-3 fatty acids DHA and EPA. The long-chain fatty acids in oysters make a synergistic combination with saturated fatty acids from butter and coconut oil.

Shrimp have ten times the amount of vitamin D than liver, which is already very high. Shrimp sauces and shrimp pastes made from dried shrimp, and therefore a concentrated source of vitamin D, are used throughout Africa and the Orient. This is the most likely explanation for low rates of osteoporosis in these regions, as well as a virtual absence of diseases linked to vitamin D deficiency—colon cancer and multiple sclerosis.

A recent study at the University of Michigan once again confirmed the extensive health benefits of vitamin D, saying that it promotes strong bones, a healthy immune system, and offers protection against some types of cancer as well as heart disease.

So eat your shrimp and oysters!

You are correct. Mercury levels in fish are becoming a greater concern. I would not recommend eating shrimp more than two or three times a month at this point. Thanks for bringing this up.