Tilapia fish – nutrition profile, benefits, and recipes

Tilapia fish is a tasty and inexpensive source of protein (1). It is the second most farmed fish in the world and it originated in Africa and the Middle East. It started gaining global popularity after scientists unraveled its innumerable health benefits. Plus, it grows quickly and does not require fancy culture conditions. However, concerns regarding its fatty acid ratio and heavy metal poisoning have surfaced, and people want to know the truth. In this article, you will find science-backed health benefits of tilapia, recipes, and the answer to an important question – should you consume tilapia? Let’s begin!

Tilapia – A Brief Introduction

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Tilapia belongs to the cichlid family. It is a freshwater fish that grows in ponds, rivers, lakes, and shallow streams at warm temperatures and has a mild taste. It resembles a sunfish and has lateral stripes and a long dorsal fin.

There are four commercial species of tilapia – Mozambique tilapia, Blue tilapia, Red tilapia, and Nile tilapia. The history of Nile tilapia can be traced back to ancient Egyptian culture.

Interestingly, tilapia was considered the symbol of rebirth. These days, it is cultured in farms, and hybrid fish are being produced to meet the increasing market demands. And they are often injected with growth hormones that may have a detrimental effect on humans. Let’s consider all the pros and cons Tilapia fish to come to a conclusion. Let’s begin with the nutrition facts.

Tilapia Nutrition Facts

Tilapia fish is loaded with protein, low in calories, and is a good source of vitamins and minerals. Take a look at its nutritional profile.

1 oz tilapia contains

• Calories – 36
• Protein – 7.3g
• Total Fat – 0.7g
• Polyunsaturated Fat – 0.11g
• Carbs – 0 grams
• Calcium – 3.9mg
• Magnesium – 9.5mg
• Potassium – 106mg
• Selenium – 15.2mg
• Vitamin E – 0.2mg
• Niacin – 1.3mg
• Folate – 1.7mcg
• Vitamin B12 – 0.5 mcg
• Pantothenic acid – 0.2mg

Now, let us see why tilapia gained popularity. What benefits does it have?

8 Health Benefits Of Tilapia

1. Good For The Bones

Tilapia fish is good for your bones. It contains minerals such as calcium and phosphorus that are needed for bone growth and maintenance. A few recent studies have shown that tilapia fish collagen type 1 is highly useful in regenerative medicine (2). It has shown promising results in aiding bone cell regeneration in the laboratory and can also be used as a scaffolding biomaterial in the dental field (3), (4).

2. Prevents Diseases Like Cancer

Like several other kinds of fish, tilapia contains selenium and antioxidants that fight cancer and treat heart-related diseases (5). Selenium reduces the free radical activity and makes you less prone to oxidative stress (6), (7). It inhibits the mutation of healthy cells to cancerous ones(8). Moreover, scientists have found that an antimicrobial peptide (short amino acid chain), hepcidin 1-5, has anti-inflammatory effects and can be used as a novel treatment for cancer (9).

3. Good For The Brain

Consuming tilapia can boost brain function as it contains omega-3s in abundance that increase neurological function and have neuroprotective properties (10). Tilapia is also loaded with selenium that is proven to protect the brain from various diseases like Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, and epilepsy (11). It increases the flow of oxygen to the brain, which helps in balancing fluids throughout the body. It not only deposits nutrients into the system but also boosts mental clarity.

4. Protects The Heart

Another health benefit of tilapia is that it takes good care of your heart. But mind you, it is wild tilapia that does this not the aquaculture tilapia that’s fed with chemicals and generally has an imbalanced omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acid ratio. Wild tilapias have more omega-3 fatty acids compared to the cultured ones (12). According to a recent study, omega-3s can help reduce high blood pressure and prevent heart attacks, strokes, and atherosclerosis (13) (14).

5. Fights Aging

Tilapia contains antioxidants and vitamin E that are good for the skin. They improve your complexion and make your skin radiant. Both the vitamins are potent antioxidants, which means they help scavenge the harmful free radicals, thereby helping reduce inflammation and stress. They also protect the skin from photodamage (skin damage caused by harmful UV rays). As a result your skin, bones, organs, and cells remain active and young (15).

6. Weight Loss

Tilapia, in conjunction with proper diet and exercise, can help boost weight loss efforts due to its high protein and low calorie content. It is very high in protein and very low in calories. It could be a great way to reduce the calorie intake and also provide your body with the nutrients it needs to function properly. It can also be a dietary option for those who are trying to get back into shape.

7. For Thyroid Patients

Tilapia contains selenium that plays an important role in the regulation of the thyroid gland and improves the hormonal functions as well (16). Regular functioning of the thyroid gland will make sure your metabolism is boosted and prevent weight gain/loss or any other disease related to a malfunctioning thyroid.

8. Heals Wounds

Scientists have found that marine collagen peptide from Nile tilapia showed significant progress in closing scratch wounds and flesh wounds in laboratory animals (17).

These are the mighty eight benefits of consuming tilapia fish. But how to prepare it? Here are a few Tilapia fish recipes to give you the general idea.

1. Baked Tilapia

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• Prep Time: 10 mins
• Cooking Time: 30 mins
• Total Time: 40 mins
• Serves: 2

Ingredients

• 4 oz tilapia fillets
• 2 teaspoons olive oil
• 1 teaspoon unsalted butter
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 1 cup broccoli
• 1 cup chopped carrot
• 1 teaspoon chili flakes
• Salt to taste

How To Prepare

1. Preheat the oven to 135^o F.
2. Line the baking tray with parchment paper.
3. Toss the tilapia fillets and veggies with olive oil, butter, lemon juice, salt, and chili flakes.
4. Transfer them to the baking tray.
5. Cover it and bake for 20-30 minutes.

2. Lemon Garlic Tilapia

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• Prep Time: 10 mins
• Cooking Time: 30 mins
• Total Time: 40 mins
• Serves: 2

Ingredients

• 4 oz tilapia fillets
• 1 teaspoon butter
• 1 teaspoon finely chopped garlic
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon chopped parsley
• Salt to taste
• ½ teaspoon pepper

How To Prepare

1. Preheat the oven to 135^oF.
2. Line the baking tray with parchment paper.
3. Toss the tilapia fillets in lemon juice, salt, pepper, and garlic.
4. Drizzle butter on top and top with parsley.
5. Transfer the fillets to the baking tray.
6. Cover it and bake for 20-30 minutes.

3. Tilapia Taco

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• Prep Time: 10 mins
• Cooking Time: 30 mins
• Total Time: 40 mins
• Serves: 2

Ingredients

• 4 biji tortilla jagung
• 4 fillet nila
• 2 sudu besar jus limau
• Garam secukup rasa
• ½ sudu teh lada
• ¼ sudu teh cili merah
• 1 sudu teh serbuk bawang putih
• ½ cawan kubis parut
• Oc alpukat, cincang
• 1 biji tomato, dicincang
• ¼ cawan timun cincang
• ½ cawan keju parut
• ½ cawan yogurt
• Ketumbar untuk hiasan
• Semburan masakan

Bagaimana untuk menyediakan

1. Gosokkan fillet nila dengan jus limau nipis, garam, lada, dan serbuk bawang putih.
2. Semburkan fillet dengan semburan memasak dan bakar, 5 minit di setiap sisi.
3. Panaskan tortilla pada kuali.
4. Sementara itu, campurkan yogurt, ketumbar, dan serpihan cili menjadi sos halus.
5. Bahagikan nila bakar pada tortilla.
6. Masukkan salsa, kubis, timun, alpukat, dan tomato.
7. Teratas dengan sos yogurt dan hiaskan dengan ketumbar.

Satu persoalan utama masih belum dijawab - adakah pengambilan ikan nila selamat? Ketahui seterusnya.

Adakah Selamat Mengonsumsi Nila?

Ya, jika ia adalah nila liar. Tetapi jika ia ditanam di ladang, ada banyak masalah, dan anda harus menyedarinya dan membuat keputusan tepat semasa membeli atau memesan ikan nila. Inilah yang harus anda ketahui.

• Risiko Keracunan Arsenik

Sedih tapi benar. Para saintis menilai ikan nila yang diternak di Taiwan, yang didapati menyimpan arsenik (18). Arsenik adalah metallogen penyebab kanser, dan pendedahan kronik kepada arsenik meningkatkan risiko barah (19).

• Risiko Keracunan Merkuri

Anda mungkin pernah mendengar tentang keracunan merkuri yang berkaitan dengan nila atau ikan secara umum. Memang benar. Para saintis telah mendapati bahawa nila air tawar dan akuakultur dapat mengumpul merkuri secara bio. Walau bagaimanapun, nila air tawar menimbulkan risiko kematian sekitar 5% lebih sedikit jika dibandingkan dengan keracunan merkuri yang disebabkan oleh nila yang diternak (20).

• Boleh Meningkatkan Keradangan

Nila juga dikenali sebagai ayam akuatik kerana kandungan proteinnya dan banyak manfaat kesihatannya. Tetapi nila yang diternak boleh menyebabkan peningkatan keradangan di dalam badan. Ini, seterusnya, boleh menyebabkan arthritis, kenaikan berat badan, dan penyakit jantung (21).

• Nisbah Omega-3 dan Omega-6 yang tidak seimbang

Nisbah ideal asid lemak omega-3 dan omega-6 adalah 1: 1. Tetapi pada ikan nila, nisbahnya adalah 2: 1 atau 4: 1, yang boleh menyebabkan banyak penyakit, termasuk hipertensi dan penyakit jantung (22).

• Risiko Barah

Ikan ternakan terdedah kepada logam berat yang akhirnya memasuki sistem manusia. Mengonsumsi terlalu banyak daripada mereka boleh menyebabkan mutasi pada DNA dan barah (23). Lebih-lebih lagi, tidak semua ikan ternakan tidak ditanam dalam keadaan kultur yang sihat dan bersih, sehingga menyebabkan banyak penyakit lain.

• PCB dan racun perosak

Para penyelidik mendapati bahawa nila yang ditanam di ladang mengandungi banyak bahan pencemar, seperti bifenil poliklorin (PCB), organoklorin (OC), organofosforus (OP), heksaklorobenzena (HCB), dan racun perosak trifluralin (24).

Untuk menyimpulkan…

Nila adalah sumber protein tanpa lemak, lemak sihat, dan antioksidan. Tetapi berhati-hatilah dari mana anda mendapatkannya. Beli dari penjual ikan tempatan atau syarikat penyerapan ikan yang dipercayai. Sekiranya anda hamil, berjumpa dengan doktor anda sebelum memakan nila.

Semoga catatan ini membantu anda mendapatkan gambaran lengkap mengenai faedah dan keselamatan ikan nila. Sekiranya anda mempunyai pertanyaan, hantarkannya di kotak komen, dan kami akan menghubungi anda. Jaga diri!

24 sumber

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