Fried, Frozen, Fast Food

If you're feeling virtuous when you order the popcorn shrimp instead of the fried chicken at a restaurant, here's a reality check: Eight fried, fast-food shrimp have zero omega-3 fatty acids.

Also short on healthy omega-3s are fried filet of fish fast-food sandwiches and most frozen fish sticks you find in grocery stores. Plus, many of these products are laden with unhealthy trans fats and saturated fats.

"Eating fried seafood should just be scorned," says William Lands, a retired scientist at the National Institutes of Health, who spent much of his career studying healthy fat, particularly that found in seafood.

"I can't think of any nutritious merit in frying seafood. You want to bake, steam, microwave, broil or grill it."

Code Blue for Crabs?

How do the Chesapeake Bay favorites blue crabs and rockfish stack up

BLUE CRABS have little omega-3 fatty acid -- about 300 milligrams per three-ounce serving, or just a fraction of what's found in fattier fish like salmon and tuna. The nonprofit group Environmental Defense advises no more than one meal a month of blue crabs, due to levels of PCBs and mercury. The State of Maryland says most adults can eat crabs up to twice a week (less for pregnant women and kids). Skip the crab "mustard," which carries pollutants.

ROCKFISH  pack a decent amount of omega-3s, but only about half of what's in salmon. Environmental Defense advises eating only farmed rockfish due to concerns about mercury, PCBs and pesticides. Maryland authorities suggest limits of 24 wild rockfish meals from May through December and 12 meals from April 15 to May 15. Pregnant women and kids should eat less.