Studies by the World Health Organization and others have shown that the Japanese enjoy longer, healthier lives (74.5 years) than those of us elsewhere. The U.S. placed 24th.
There were a number of factors cited in the study, published in 2000, including the lower incidences of red meat consumption and tobacco use.
Sea vegetables were given credit for contributing a very positive diet influence. Sea vegetables may sound strange. but we have a closer relationship with them than you might imagine. Carrageenan, (known as Irish Moss), is a by-product of carrageen and is used extensively as an emulsifying, thickening and gelling additive in ice creams, jellies, biscuits, milk shakes and frozen desserts, even in some cosmetics and medicines !
Nori is the seaweed wrapper used for sushi and can be cut into strips, for instance, and added to salads and other foods providing textural variations for otherwise common preparations.
I found a great resource here at DMOZ for sea vegetables with extensive information and links. One of which, Sea Vegetable Cuisine by Aveline Kushi, gives examples of use and nutritional information.
Ryan Drum has compiled a lot more information including some health specific benefits to be found in sea veggies, and Wikipedia also provides a guide.
Seth Braun, writing for eCo Times, talks about sea vegetables and superfoods as well as algae in a second article.
Please take a few moments to check out Michael Guiry and his seaweed site. His links lead to even more material.
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“I also have a lot of preserved foods, things that will keep for a long time like dried fish, seaweed or lotus seed.”
Martin Yan
1 response so far ↓
1 Paul Green // Mar 11, 2009 at 7:12 am
I just attended the ACF Conference in Boston a few weeks ago, and there were several seminars on sustainable seafood. A lot of Asian countries are getting into aquaculture. I am a big believer in living off the ocean. Products from the ocean can be most beneficial to ones diet. The latest farm raised fish is Cobia, being farmed off the coast of Belize. I believe as responsible custodians of our oceans we have to be careful in our quest for sustainable seafood and not hurt or destroy any ecosystems along the way. So we can reap the benefits of all the edible plant life the seas has to offer.
Chef Coffey
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