Canned sardines vs canned tuna, which one you should choose?

Canned sardines vs canned tuna are popular question asked by so many seafood lovers who like to eat canned fish. Of course canned is the best alternative for fresh fish because they are way cheaper, simple, and available widely. You can grab canned fish so fast at your local grocery stores or supermarket. More importantly, they have longer shelf life than fresh or frozen fish due to the preservative.
The problem is there are a lot of canned fish options at the market with so many brands available. But today, we are not talk about which brand is the best; instead we want to talk about whether you should select canned sardines or canned tuna.
Actually, it depends on personal preferences. Some people love tuna over sardines because they are not as fishy as sardines. However, other might select sardines instead of tuna due to the lower mercury. Of course, we can blame tuna for being a predatory and bigger fish than sardine this they are also highly contaminated by mercury. Despite that fact, people still love to eat or consume tuna fish. When they are bored eating tuna, they will select other fish including sardines.

Canned sardines vs canned tuna, which one you should choose?
When we are talking about canned sardines vs canned tuna then we need to compare them on several points. Sardine is usually used for alternative of canned tuna, sardine is healthier than tuna and they are cheaper. Although tuna is more popular, however sardine can do its job when replacing tuna in many recipes. If you want to have healthier food then you can replace the tuna with sardine in some of tuna recipes.
Some people might avoid eating sardines due to the fishy smell. However, sardines have really great taste especially if you know how to mix it with other seasonings to make the fish less fishy. Sardines also have soft textures; the meat can break easily with fork. In other words, tuna has firm texture, it also has nice taste and it is one of the most popular canned seafood in the world. Both tuna and sardines packed with almost similar nutrients including protein, minerals, and vitamins. Let’s learn about them in more details including canned sardines vs canned tuna mercury.

1.      Both tuna and sardine have nutrition omega-3 fatty acids
Tuna and sardine have nutrient from omega-3 fatty acids. This fat is a good fat that human body cannot produce. Omega-3 support brain function and it lower cardiovascular disease risk. For your information, about 6-oz portion of canned sardine offers around 2.4 grams of omega-3 while tuna offers 1.5 grams per serving. Yes, sardine is higher in omega-3 than tuna, but they both are good source of omega-3 for your diet. You can replace them one to another in a week for variety.
2.      Both tuna and sardine packed with good amount of protein
If you want to increase protein intake then you can choose either sardine or tuna or perhaps both of them. A 6-oz portion of canned sardines in oils provides about 41 grams of protein while in the same portion of canned tuna; it provides higher level of protein which is about 49 grams. Protein is really important when you go on diet. Protein can be used to fight infection and it also helps you to build muscle.

3.      Both tuna and sardine packed with important minerals and vitamins for your body
Both of the fish meats contain vitamin E, however sardines have higher level of this vitamin compared than tuna fish. Furthermore, sardine offers more calcium than tuna. The vitamin E plays an important role to promote new red blood cell and it also good source for antioxidants to fight against tissue damage. Calcium helps to strengthen your bones and it helps good communication between the body cells.
4.      Both tuna and sardine contains sodium level
Since they are fish, of course they will contain sodium; however sardines have more sodium level than tuna fish. So, when you eat these fish, you better not add more salt to avoid over consume sodium. About 6 ounces of canned sardines can increase sodium intake by 859 milligrams while a canned tuna with the same portion offer 602 milligrams. If you do not know the reason of why you need to limit your sodium consumption is because too much sodium can strain the kidneys since they need to work extra hard to remove excess sodium in your body system. Meanwhile, too much sodium can increase the risk of cardiovascular diseases as well.

Canned sardines vs canned tuna have delicious taste and flavor. Both of them packed in many different styles including in oils, water, and brine. Of course there are other packaging styles with additional seasonings to add more flavors.
If you concerned about the mercury level in the tuna fish, then you can always option for sardine. Pregnant women can replace tuna with sardine which is low in mercury; however they still need to limit the amount of consumption. Many suggest people need to limit their consumption of tuna based on their body weight. If you still insist to go with tuna, then it is better to select light tuna meat (skipjack and yellowfin) instead of white meat (Albacore). Light tuna meats contain lower mercury than Albacore or white meat. And it is also recommended that pregnant women avoid fish with high mercury.

If you are ask is tuna and sardine the same thing then practically both of them are fish, however they have different amount of nutrients, mercury, and sodium levels. Moreover, they also taste different. Canned tuna has lighter flavor than sardine plus you can say they are more versatile in many recipes.
But, if you concerned about the health, then we suggest you need totally pick sardine over tuna. Sardine is more sustainable with lower mercury and moreover, they offer soft bones which can be consumed which is a good source of calcium. Meanwhile, tuna is farmed in many places and not just being caught in the wild ocean. So, tuna is not nearly as healthy as sardines Fish. That’s it about canned sardines vs canned tuna, hope you get some basic information about them in this article.