Ever since my mother told me, I have believed it. Fish and shellfish are brain food.
As I grew older, I may have taken that truth with a grain of salt or two. But when I started gathering nutritional facts about crayfish, I found to my surprise that nutritionists now are convinced that crayfish, and other shellfish like lobster, crab and shrimp, do indeed have the nutrients that stimulate mental energy.
The more I studied the subject, the more I realized that crayfish have a super healthy combination of nutrients from its almost pure form of protein to its healthy amount of Omega-3 Fatty Acids which we now know are among the most beneficial fats we can eat. Crayfish protein has large amounts of the amino acids tyrosine that mentally energizes the brain.
Come to think of it, maybe this is why I usually feel so revived after a meal of crayfish. These amino acids are supposed to make you think and react better and to be more attentive and motivated and mentally energetic. Could this be the reason why crayfish parties and crawfish festivals are so lively?
One nutritionist expressed it as “being on a mental roll” thanks to the dopamine and norepinephrine getting to work in the brain.
However, it appears, according to many physicians specializing in blood types in relation to foods, that people with type O blood thrive on shell fish while those of type B blood often are allergic to it. Just like my wife who cannot touch crustaceans.
In a serving of 3 - 4 ounces of crayfish, you can expect the following amounts of nutrients:
Total fat 1 g.
Saturated fat 0 g.
Cholesterol 126 mg.(compare one egg 200 mg.)
Sodium 170 mg.
Total Carbohydrate 0 g.
Dietary fiber 0 g.
Sugars 0 g.
Protein 16 g.
Calories 80 (compare to beef 242 calories)
In addition, there is a healthy supply of vitamin D and A as well as calcium and potassium, copper and zinc in crayfish. Iodine is also often mentioned as an important ingredient. As you can also see, crayfish is a very low carbohydrate food, and without ‘carbs’ you can safely eat crayfish without putting on unwanted weight. Another favorable aspect of crayfish nutrition is that there is hardly ever any toxic residues or artificial hormones injected into the meat as crayfish usually come from lakes that are free from industrial or other pollution. In addition, crayfish are very sensitive to polluted waters and have in the past been used to test the purity of lakes before we invented other methods to determine water purity.