Be Wary of Fatty Fish

Not all fish are low in fat. The fat content of fish varies enormously depending on the species, but generally, the fish are fatty because either they're cold-water fish (they need more insulation), or they've been packed in oil. Let's set some parameters first: lean fish have under 5 grams of fat per 3.5-ounce serving, while those that have more than 5 grams of fat should be considered fatty. (There aren't many truly fatty fish, i.e., those that have more than 10 grams of fat per serving, but there are a few, such as herring, mackerel, salmon, pompano, sardines, and shad.) Feel free to indulge in lean fish like cod, flounder, haddock, monkfish, orange roughy, perch, pike, red snapper, rockfish, sea bass or tuna. Fish that you may want to avoid or eat only occasionally include: catfish, shark, and bluefish as they all contain between 5-10 grams of fat.