Crab is not a common breakfast meat. However, a fast growing breed of people, love to experiment with their morning meal and start their day with a variety of seafood. Even though, a seafood-centered diet is considered as a healthy dietary practice, is it healthy to eat crabmeat for breakfast regularly or does it turn out to cause more harm than good! Here is a low down of crabmeat nutrition to help you decide…

Nutritional Composition

The nutrient value of crab can vary slightly depending upon the variety of the crab. Here is the composition on the four most commonly consumed crab varieties

Health benefits of eating Crab for breakfast:

·Heart healthy protein

Crabs are a rich source of high biological value lean protein. This protein is in its most easily digestible form. Moreover, crabmeat contains less than 2 gm fat and just 80 kcals. This makes it a perfect meat for people with high risk of cardio vascular diseases, diabetes, and athletes who would like to add protein but no fat to their diet.

·Trove of Antioxidants

This is one of rare non-veggie source of antioxidants like Selenium, EPA, and DHA, which help stave off a myriad of diseases including cancer, age related macular degeneration, arthritis, etc.  

·Provides the early morning boost to brain activity

Crabmeat is a good source of Chromium – an element that works with insulin and aids sugar metabolism. Consuming crab for breakfast helps maintain right blood sugar levels – a necessity for proper brain activity. Moreover, crabmeat provides tryptophan, the precursor of neurotransmitter serotonin or the stress busting neurotransmitter. A healthy supply of these amino acids in morning ensures that you start your day on a happy note with less mental stress.

·Rich source of trace elements

These crustaceans are a trove of several vitamins and minerals including B vitamins like B12 and niacin, and minerals like phosphorus, zinc, copper, and selenium.

Side effects of eating Crab:

·Lacks carbohydrates

A breakfast food must provide proper proportions of all 3 proximate principles. However, crabmeat contains no carbohydrates and dietary fiber. Unless combined with a high fiber food, breakfast crab can lead to constipation and other related health problems.

·Fear of contamination

Crustaceans are marine scavengers and highly affected by contamination of sea/ocean bed. As per the directives by Environmental Defense Fund, several varieties of crab contain high levels of mercury and PCBs during the summer months. They recommend including crabmeat not more than 2 times a month.

·Rich in sodium

Crabmeat is one of the rare natural sources of sodium in the diet. Each serving of this meat can provide up to 700 mg of sodium. In an age of sodium overload, this is not the kind of meat to look forward to.

Thus, crabmeat is not without virtues, but has its own share of disadvantages too. It can surely be included in the breakfast once in a while. However, variety is the spice of life and consuming this meat regularly may not be a wise decision.

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