YOUR FEEDBACK

FARMED SALMON
February 28, 2008

Hello, I really enjoyed your article by David Dobbs, "The Wild Salmon Debate" As an officer in my local organic food buying club, I thought I was up to date on farmed salmon. I was wondering if you could check with the author as to the correctness of what I've heard/know about the issue. First, I've been told/read that farmed Atlantic salmon differs from wild Atlantic salmon because they are genetically engineered (crossed with a larger, faster growing fish) to grow quickly. That is why they have white meat. The danger stressed to me is that when these fish escape their nets, they interbreed with the wild stock and/or outcompete them for food, thus contributing to the wild's extinction. I am told that they are really entirely different from REAL Atlantic salmon! Comments, please?

—Sincerely, Barbara Harling
PS. The article was excellent....a real eye opener!

SLEEP NUTS

After reading the very informative article by Dr. Rachel Johnson on insomnia, “Can’t Sleep?” [March/April], I noticed that one food source that is packed with serotonin, a neurotransmitter that can help induce relaxation, was not mentioned: walnuts. Is it true that a handful of these can help you get a good night’s sleep?

—Anne Randolph, Yellow Springs, OH

Dr. Johnson responds: Walnuts are a good source of melatonin, a hormone that governs the sleep cycle—and they also contain serotonin, a neurotransmitter associated with a calming effect. But research has yet to be done to prove walnuts’ worth, if any, as a sleep-inducer.

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