Negative Calories

Negative Calories

If you're like me, you've probably grown up eating tuna on sandwiches, and there are a lot of good reasons to. As well as having a negative calorie effect, tuna also has many other health benefits.

Tuna, like several other fish, contain the beneficial omega-3 fatty acids. These fatty acids are essential for our health, yet the body does not produce them, they must be obtained from food. Omega-3 fatty acids benefit your cardiovascular system, by helping to prevent blood clots, helping to prevent erratic heartbeats, and improving the ratio of HDL (good cholesterol) to LDL (bad cholesterol). Omega-3s help to lower the amount of lipids in the bloodstream. They can also increase the activity of endothelium-derived nitric oxide, which helps the arteries to relax and dilate, improving blood flow. Some research shows that omega-3s can also help to prevent the damaging effects of sunburn as well as skin cancer.

Tuna is also a good source of vitamin B6, which helps to lower the levels of homocysteine, a compound which can damage the walls of the arteries.

Selenium, which is found in tuna, is a component of an antioxidant, glutathione peroxidase, which helps to keep the liver healthy and functioning properly, detoxifying and cleaning harmful compounds out of the body. Also, selenium can help to prevent cancer and heart disease.

Tuna has been eaten since people began to fish, and is still extremely popular, and with good reason. It's a very tasty fish, and is very beneficial to our health.

TUNA AU GRATIN:

1 Tbsp butter or margarine
1/2 medium onion, thinly sliced
1 cup cheddar cheese, shredded
1 cup fontina cheese, shredded
1/3 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup milk
3 6oz. cans of tuna, drained
1/2 cup bread crumbs

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F.

In a medium skillet, melt the butter or margarine. Add the sliced onion, and cook over medium high heat until the onion turns golden brown, about 3 minutes. Remove the onions from the heat and set aside.

In a medium bowl, combine 1/2 cup of the cheddar cheese, 1/2 cup of the fontina cheese, the mayonnaise, milk, and tuna. Spread the tuna mixture evenly in the bottom of an 8x8 inch baking pan. Spread the sauteed onions on top of the tuna mixture.

Combine the bread crumbs with the remaining cheese, and sprinkle on top of the tuna mixture.

Bake at 350 degrees, uncovered, for 30 minutes.

Remove from the oven, and serve.

4 Servings
Negative Calories