Three surprising health benefits of sardines

These small silver fish are sold canned in water, oil, mustard sauce, hot sauce, or other flavored sauce. Sardines are packed whole, unlike canned tuna or salmon, because each fish is smaller than 25 centimeters and its skin, bones and other body parts can be eaten.

Don't let their looks fool you; if you enjoy other fish like salmon or trout, you'll probably like the taste of sardines. They are great as a spread in combination with eggs, they can be eaten with onions, in a salad, and you can use them to make stuffing for peppers. These are just a few of the many ways to enjoy them. The question arises, how healthy are sardines really? We will reveal to you in the following lines several ways in which they affect our health.

They can improve the health of our bones

Sardines naturally have two key nutrients that help keep our bones strong. The bones in sardines are small, soft, and edible, which is great news for our bones as well. Sardines with bones are an excellent dairy-free source of calcium, which is essential for bone health.  One can of sardines has 27% of the daily value (DV) of calcium, which is more than a cup of milk! Most of the calcium in sardines is found in their bones.

But calcium isn't the only way sardines help keep our bones strong and healthy; they are also an excellent source of vitamin D. Vitamin D is a fat-soluble vitamin that helps our body absorb calcium. If you are low in vitamin D, the calcium you take in will not have enough impact on your bone health. Fatty fish such as salmon, mackerel, swordfish, and sardines are excellent natural sources of vitamin D. One can of sardines has 22% of our daily intake of this vitamin.

They have a positive effect on the health of our heart

Eating sardines is a great way for our body to get enough omega-3 fatty acids because each can has 1 gram of these unsaturated fats, which protect the heart. Researchers recently analyzed data from nearly 200,000 adults (with and without heart disease). They found that consuming at least 2 servings (175 grams) of oily fish per week significantly reduced the risk of major heart disease in healthy adults and mortality in those who already had heart disease.

They give us energy

Along with calcium, vitamin D, omega-3 fatty acids, and protein, sardines are an excellent source of vitamin B12. One can of sardines has as much as 343% of our daily value of vitamin B12. Deficiency of this vitamin is most often seen in the elderly, those with pernicious anemia (a disease that prevents the stomach from absorbing B12), people with various stomach ailments, and vegetarians or vegans. Insufficient vitamin B12 can lead to fatigue, shortness of breath, and low energy levels. While the vitamin B12 in sardines will not give us an instant energy boost like, for example, caffeine, including this type of fish and other sources of vitamin B12 in our diet will help us to always be full of energy.

Post by: Rinna James