People really love our Wild Sockeye Salmon Sausage, which comes in three succulent varieties: Savory Country Breakfast Style, Spicy Italian Style, and Chorizo Style.

Our sausages are 99% pure Sockeye Salmon, plus organic seasonings and a pinch of organic arrowroot powder.

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Our wild Alaskan Sockeye Salmon offers special appeal to those—like many of us here at Vital Choice—who like their wild salmon firm and flavorful.

These sustainably harvested fish are a super-healthy source of protein, rich in long-chain omega-3 essential fatty acids, and potent natural antioxidants.

And sockeye is a nearly unrivalled food source of bone-saving, cancer-curbing vitamin D, with a whopping 1,100 IU per 6-oz serving, or nearly triple the US RDA.

Our flash-frozen portions come vacuum-sealed for superior quality and convenience. Certified Kosher by EarthK

Excess belly fat – also called abdominal or central obesity – is one of a cluster of physical signs that characterize metabolic syndrome.

This all-too-common syndrome is associated with greater risk of heart disease and diabetes, and affects almost one in three Americans.

Metabolic syndrome (MetS) is defined as having three or more of a half-dozen physiological markers, including abdominal obesity, high blood triglycerides, low HDL cholesterol, high blood pressure, insulin resistance, clot-prone blood, and chronic inflammation.

Past studies have indicated that certain of the antioxidant pigments common to colorful foods such as berries, chocolate, grapes, and blue-purple corn may help discourage abdominal obesity. (See “Tart Cherries Seen Suppressing Metabolic Syndrome”.)

Conversely, the standard American diet is associated with increased risk of 

Key Points Japanese team publishes 4th study suggesting that berry pigments discourage fat and inflammation. Anthocyanins reduce weight gain in mice fed high-calorie diets. In human cells, anthocyanins adjust messenger chemicals in ways that reduce inflammation and reduce formation of belly fat.

developing MetS. (See “Omega-6/Omega-3 Imbalance Pushes Heart/Diabetes Perils” and “American Diet Linked to Common Metabolic Killer”, and “Omega-3s Seen to Fight Metabolic Syndrome”.)

Research results from Japan provide more evidence that the antioxidant pigments in certain colorful fruits may discourage formation of belly fat.

The antioxidants in question are called anthocyanins … the same polyphenol compounds that give berries, grapes, cocoa, and autumn leaves their red-purple hues.

Japanese study boosts anti-obesity promise of purple-red pigments

A team led by Takanori Tsuda of Chubu University in Aichi, Japan has been testing the effects of food-borne anthocyanins – C3G (cyanidin 3-glucoside) and Cy (cyanidin) –  on special human cells called pre-adipocytes.

Pre-adipocytes turn into fat cells (adipocytes) in response to specific stimuli, including dietary factors and exercise.

Studies that Dr. Tsuda’s team published in 2003, 2004, and 2006 produced results with encouraging implications for the effects of food-borne anthocyanins on development of belly fat and obesity.

As they wrote two years ago, their results show that particular anthocyanins prevented pre-adipocytes from becoming fat cells: “…anthocyanins can … ameliorate adipocyte function related with obesity and diabetes …” (Tsuda T et al 2006)

Specifically, the results demonstrated significant changes in the secretion of various adipokines, which are messenger proteins that tell pre-adipocytes whether to become fat cells, or not.

Most adipokines induce inflammation and promote fat build up, but one – called adiponectin – inhibits inflammation and appears to protect against metabolic syndrome, obesity, insulin resistance, and cardiovascular disease (Takemura Y et al. 2007).

Exposure to anthocyanins C3G and Cy resulted in changes that militate against expanding abdomens:

• Higher levels of adiponectin.
• Lower levels of undesirable adipokines: plasminogen activator inhibitor-1, interleukin-6, uncoupling protein2, acylCoA oxidase1, and perilipin.

Mouse study supports practical potential of anthocyanins

It's easy for people to get confused and misled when it comes to mercury and fish.

Their concerns are understandable and were reflected in a letter we received today, which we will answer here.

First things first: our fish are exceptionally pure, by any standard.

Our Tuna and Halibut are hand-selected for their youth and small size and are therefore unusually low in mercury compared with national brands.

And all of our other offerings – Sardines, Sablefish, Spot Prawns, Scallops, and King Crab – are species inherently low in mercury, regardless of their size or age at time of harvest.

But we continually get questions about mercury and wild Salmon, even though the U.S. EPA and FDA – and most media reports – accurately characterize wild Salmon as very low in mercury.

For example, consider this statement from the Alaska Division of Public Health (SOA 2001):

“Fortunately, mercury levels are very low in the most frequently consumed fish from Alaska, such as Salmon, Cod, Halibut, Pollock, Sole, and Herring. Mercury levels in Salmon are among the lowest found.”

A recent review of the evidence confirmed the superior purity of wild Alaskan Salmon: “Pacific Salmon … had exceptionally low [mercury] concentrations.” (Jewett SC, Duffy LK 2007)

And recent data from Alaska’s Fish Monitoring Program shows that levels of organic pollutants (e.g., PCBs and dioxin) in Alaska fish fall well below those that would raise any health concerns (SOA 2007).

Sled-dog study prompts customer query

Dose matters Modern labs can detect chemicals in parts per trillion, so we now know that virtually every food sold contains some level of contaminants.   What matters is how a food ranks relative to the maximum safe intake levels of the contaminants it contains, and how much of it you eat. As outlined in this article, wild Salmon is very safe in this regard.   What about our unrefined, undistilled Vital Choice Sockeye Salmon Oil?   In the most recent tests, using a threshold detection level of 10 parts per billion (0.01 part per million), Covance Laboratories found no detectable mercury in our Salmon Oil.

The concern expressed in a query we received today was prompted by an article posted at Discovery.com.

Hello,

I would like your comments on … [a] … Discovery Channel piece on the high amount of mercury in Alaskan salmon. I thought your Salmon was purported to be mercury free, no? This concerns me. Thank you in advance.

– Lilly F.

Actually, the article that prompted Lilly’s letter did not say wild Alaskan Salmon is high in mercury.

Instead, it concerned a study in sled dogs living in Native Alaskan settlements near Salmon rivers, whose diets are extremely high in Salmon. 

The researchers' results showed higher levels of mercury in the pups’ fur, compared with sled dogs raised on regular, meat-and-grain-based dog chow. 

Considered out of context, it's easy to see how this story could raise concerns.

However, the results raise no alarms – even for folks who eat lots of wild Salmon – and are unsurprising when you consider how the sled dogs were fed.

The dogs’ diets consisted almost entirely of Salmon, of which these canines consume huge amounts to meet the high calorie and protein demands of working very hard in a very cold place.

Relative to body weight, sled dogs fed primarily on Salmon eat far more fish than even the most avid human Salmon lover could ever consume.

In short, wild Salmon have some of the lowest mercury levels of any commercial species. This advantage is a function of their diets, short life spans, and pristine environment.

However, we have never said or implied that our Salmon or other seafood is “mercury-free”. This is because – like beef, chicken, lamb, and pork – no fish is completely free of mercury. (That's right, meats contain varying amounts of mercury, albeit less than most fish.)

Alaskans enjoy wild Salmon with abandon … safely

Native Alaskans, who eat far more Salmon and fish than the average American, have not shown signs of mercury ...