the wild, but it’s not a single type of fish. Instead, it’s the name for nearly a hundred species of fish commonly found in Africa and the Middle East.
Myth #2: Tilapia Is As Bad As Bacon
In comparison to bacon, it is low calorie and low fat. It is also low in omega- 3, but that doesn’t mean it’s bad for you. The comparison came from the fact that tilapia raised on farms in China and Central America, which account for three-fourths of the tilapia we get, has very high levels of omega-6 fatty acids and negligible omega-3s (due to the fish’s diet).
Unlike omega-3s, which tame inflammation and promote heart and brain health, omega-6s may increase inflammation, but only when they’re consumed in excess of omega-3s. In other words, omega-6s themselves aren’t bad for you.
But when your fatty acid ratio falls out of whack, “omega-6s are converted to pro-inflammatory messengers that orchestrate diabetes, stroke, heart disease, arthritis, and even Alzheimer’s,” says Floyd Chilton, director of the Wake Forest Center for Botanical Lipids and Inflammatory Disease Prevention.
Therefore, Chilton insists lean, protein-rich tilapia shouldn’t be