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Lansing's Advice Column

Dear IMO,

My husband and I are having a debate over which type of salmon to buy:  farm-raised or wild?  I believe that wild salmon is better since it will have less harmful chemicals than those raised in captivity?  He claims that farm-raised salmon will have less heavy metals than wild salmon caught in the ocean and therefore better for you.  Who is right?

Stephanie

Dear Stephanie,

Before I answer your question, promise me you'll never make salmon croquettes.  My mother used to make them for us during Lent, and boy were they awful.  I can't imagine where those salmon came from, but the cans always looked like they were from a government warehouse from 1950's.

Farm-raised salmon has higher levels of PCBs, a toxic chemical that ought to be avoided, but it contains less mercury than wild salmon.  As we know from numerous health bulletins, mercury is a dangerous chemical and ought to be avoided as well.  So what does one do when deciding on the type of salmon to grill? 

In a literature search, IMO could find no articles that indicated farm-raised salmon causes harm to humans.  In fact, evidence suggests that eating salmon, which contains something called 3 omega fatty acids, significantly lowers the risk of cardiovascular death for men who have survived a heart attack.  Other chemicals in salmon, such as decosahexaenoic acids, known to us folk as DHA, lower the risk of dementia including Alzheimer's disease.  Finally, studies indicate that DHA also reduces the risk of blindness among the elderly. 

So, you are both right.  Farm raised has less mercury, but a bit more PCBs.   Farm raised is cheaper and more readily available.  The greatest risk in eating either type of salmon seems to be among pregnant women and infants.  Although some argue that farm-raised is less healthy, there is little evidence to back this claim.  I like mine grilled with a Dijon-horseradish glaze.      

 

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