1. Tilapia
Did you know that in some regards, eating tilapia is worse than eating bacon? In fact, the shift to eating more farmed fish like tilapia is leading to highly inflammatory diets, according to a 2008 study published in the Journal of the American Dietetic Association.
Wake Forest University School of Medicine researchers say tilapia is one of the most widely consumed fish in America. The problem with that? It contains very low levels of beneficial omega-3 fatty acids and, perhaps worse, very high levels of inflammatory omega-6 fatty acids.
Sustaining high levels of inflammation in the body can worsen symptoms of autoimmune disorders and may be linked to chronic conditions like heart disease, cancer and diabetes.
If you must eat this fish, avoid tilapia from China, where farming practices are particularly worrisome. Better sources are the U.S., Canada, the Netherlands, Ecuador and Peru.
Of course, wild-caught tilapia is preferable to farmed fish but is very hard to find.
1.1 Atlantic Cod
The issue with Atlantic cod is more about the environment and fish populations than human health. This species has been heavily fished for over a thousand years, and by the late 1990s, the fishery collapsed. While fishing for Atlantic cod has significantly decreased since then, the population has had difficulty recovering. Experts agree that the collapse of the fishery has caused lasting changes to the North Atlantic food web, and the species is now classified as vulnerable to extinction.
2. Atlantic Flatfish (halibut, flounder, and sole)
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