Benefits of shellfish for health: build muscle to overcome anemia

You probably already eat seafood like shrimp and squid. However, what about shellfish? Make no mistake, this seafood has a lot of health benefits. In addition, the distinctive and savory taste can make many people addicted. Come on, take a closer look at what are the nutrients and benefits of the following shellfish.

Nutritional content in shellfish

There are several types of shellfish that are widely available in Indonesia. Some of them are virgin clams and mussels. Both are equally nutritious as long as you choose fresh shellfish. The following is the nutritional content you can get from approximately 85 grams of shellfish.

• Protein: 11 grams or 22 percent of the daily nutritional adequacy rate (RDA)
• Fat: 1 gram or 1 percent of the RDA
• Omega-3 fatty acids: 168 milligrams
• Besi: 12 milligrams or 66 percent of the RDA
• Vitamin A.: 10 micrograms or 9 percent of the RDA
• Vitamin B12: 42 micrograms or 700 percent of the RDA
• Vitamin C: 11.1 milligrams or 18 percent of the RDA
• Calcium: 78.2 milligrams or 7 percent of the RDA
• Potassium: 533.8 milligrams or 15 percent of the RDA
• Manganese: 0.4 milligrams or 21 percent of the RDA
• Selenium: 20.7 micrograms or 30 percent of the RDA
• Carbohydrate: 2 grams or 1 percent of the RDA
• Calories: 63 kcal

Benefits of shellfish for health

Shellfish has many benefits that are a pity to miss. Interested in trying to eat shellfish? Here it is the benefits.

1. Overcoming anemia

Clams are rich in iron. Iron itself is needed to form hemoglobin, which is a special protein that is responsible for carrying oxygen in your blood throughout the body. Without hemoglobin in the blood, your organs will not function properly due to lack of oxygen.

Well, eating shellfish can help increase hemoglobin in the blood. That way, those of you who have iron deficiency anemia can get enough iron intake to form hemoglobin.

2. Maintain heart health

You can get a high intake of omega-3 fatty acids in one serving of fresh shellfish. Omega-3 fatty acids themselves can lower triglyceride levels that are too high. High triglyceride levels are at risk of causing various heart problems such as hardening of the arteries and heart attacks.

However, don't overeat shellfish. The reason is, shellfish contain cholesterol. Cholesterol levels that are too high are also at risk for your heart health.

3. Build and care for muscles

Protein is a nutrient that plays an important role in building muscle mass as well as treating it from tissue or cell damage. For those of you who often experience muscle pain, protein can also speed up the recovery process for stiff and sore muscles.

Like other seafood, shellfish are also rich in protein. Shellfish is even a healthier source of protein than beef or chicken because of its lower fat and calorie content.

4. Maintain nervous system function

In order to carry out its duties properly, the nervous system in your body requires vitamin B complex. One of them is vitamin B12. Lack of vitamin B12 has the risk of causing nerve damage to decreased brain function.
Therefore, it is a shame to miss the benefits of shellfish which contain high amounts of vitamin B12. Eating shellfish can help maintain the function of your nervous system, especially in the brain.

Tips for safe eating shellfish

Some people are allergic to shellfish. If allergy symptoms appear such as itching, rash, hives, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, difficulty breathing, or swelling, stop eating and immediately take allergy medicine.

Shellfish is also not recommended for raw consumption because of the enormous risk to health. It is recommended that you cook the clams by boiling them for about five minutes or steaming them for four to nine minutes.

Don't eat shellfish that don't open their shells. This means that the shells are dead before cooking. Dead shells rot quickly and taste no longer delicious.

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