Fish roe is indeed high in cholesterol.
Cholesterol is a substance that’s produced by your liver. It helps you to:
- Process vitamin D
- Break down foods
- Make hormones
When you hear of "good" and "bad" cholesterol, it's because there are two main kinds of cholesterol:
- Low-density lipoprotein (LDL), or “bad” cholesterol
- High-density lipoprotein (HDL), or “good” cholesterol.
Regular consumption of fish roe can be unhealthy because it may increase your LDL cholesterol.
A 85 grams serving of fish roe provides 407 mg of cholesterol. This amount is more than twice the 200 mg suggested as a daily upper limit by the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute.
Elevated levels of LDL cholesterol is bad because it can:
- Accumulate and clog up your blood vessels
- Block blood flow
- Cause blood clots
These problems can lead to disease such as heart attack or stroke. HDL cholesterol, on the other hand helps to transport LDL cholesterol out of your arteries.
Best advice? Moderation when it comes to eating fish roe, as always!
Cholesterol levels are adversely affected by:
- Consuming a diet high in saturated fat and cholesterol
- Being overweight
- Smoking
A balanced diet, exercise and a healthy body weight can help to reduce your unhealthy cholesterol level. Hope that helps! :-)
