It's probably safest to say that all fish is all relatively polluted, and we shouldn’t eat it in large quantities purely to gain huge “health benefits” from it. Many large, deep water fish species, whilst being high in the very sexy omega-3 fatty acids (which current evidence suggest is wonderful for cardiovascular health) are also heavily overfished and not sustainable choices.

Although fish is a dietary source of Omega−3 essential fatty acids, fish do not synthesise them, but instead obtain them from the algae (microalgae in particular) or plankton in their diets - and we can do the same by consuming spirulina and other plant based foods. 

Flaxseed (or linseed) and its oil are perhaps the most widely available plant-based source of the Omega−3 fatty acid ALA. Flaxseed oil consists of approximately 55% ALA, which makes it six times richer than most fish oils in n−3 fatty acids, something to keep in mind when wondering where you vegans will get your Omega-3s from! hempseeds and chia seeds are also very high in Omega-3s.

I sometimes encourage people who can't bear to part from a flesh-centric diet to use fish as a way to bridge the gap from mainstream eating to cleaner eating. Fish can be a healthier option for many people practising a cleaner way of eating by transitioning away from the more antibiotic- and hormone-laden meat of farmed land animals, and dare I say, can stay in the diet in the longterm if consumed properly, sustainably and in moderation.

If you choose to eat oily fish you should be aware of the potential presence of not-so-delicious heavy metals and fat-soluble pollutants like PCBs and dioxins, which are known to accumulate up the food chain, a process known as biomagnification. After a fairly extensive review, researchers in 2006 reported that the benefits of fish intake generally far outweigh the potential risks... but the choice is always yours to make. 

When we eat fish we’re putting into our body what the fish are feeding on, and considering biomagnification of toxins such as pesticide run-off and heavy metals, it's ideal to use your hand as a gauge when at the seafood market. If the fillet off the WHOLE fish is the size of your entire palm (including fingers), the buildup of heavy metals and other pollutants is minimised. In short, go for smaller fish if you eat fish at all.

From a purely health-conscious perspective, high quality, organic, wild deep sea fish are what we should go for. The coveted Omega-3 fatty acids are essential, meaning they cannot be synthesised by the human body but are vital for normal metabolism. Two hefty reviews by the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition and JAMA from 2006 both indicated decreases in total mortality and cardiovascular incidents (read: big old heart attacks) associated with the regular consumption of fish and fish oil supplements. 

One of the most widely available dietary sources of two important types of Omega-3s (EPA and DHA) is cold water oily fish, such as salmon, herring, mackerel, anchovies, and sardines. Oils from these fish have a profile of around seven times as much Omega−3 as Omega−6, (the latter being the fatty acid we tend to get far too much of in a standard western diet at the expense of Omega 3). 

However if you have any scrap of environmental conscience, it's not as simple as all this, as many Omega-3 rich wild seafood sources are also those overfished and most endangered, such as:

* Atlantic Salmon - Also known as Tasmanian Salmon, Salmon and Smoked Salmon
* Tuna - Southern Bluefin, Bigeye and Albacore
* Yellowtail Kingfish

Yes, you may have already noticed - these are all the species used in sushi and sashimi restaurants!

In addition, according to Australla's Sustainable Seafood Guide, NO farmed fish species are truly sustainable. The majority are farmed in sea cages which is pretty nasty due to the environmental impacts of farming operation, and there are concerns about the potential for pollution and fish escapes into the wild from sea cages. For carnivorous fish such as salmon and trout, there is a massive reliance on catch of significant quantities of small fish from near the base of the food web to supply feed for this industry.

So your worst choice in terms of biomagnification as well as environmental degradation would be farmed barramundi, farmed salmon, farmed trout - yes, the varieties that are most available from Coles and Woolies! D'oh!

The Australia's Sustainable Seafood Guide is a great little handbook to keep with you when buying fish - whether it's wild, farmed, or freshwater fish. For the record, my picks of the most sustainable as well as minimally toxic seafood are:

* Australian Herring
* Bonito
* Leatherjacket
* Wild Australian Salmon - get your Omega 3s and eat it too
* Wild bream, trevally, whiting and tailor 

So for the fish-loving yet environmentally conscious diners out there, aim for the most suatainable, high quality, and smaller fishes, and don’t eat it more than two to three times a week.

I have a confession to make... nutritionists over-indulge sometimes!

Yesterday a batch of Loving Earth raw vegan chocolate arrived at my house and I was toe-curlingly, disturbingly excited. Coupled with a full day in clinic, and followed by a visit to a local fashion show where Palasis and the other chefs were swapping delicious morsels of food (read: japanese dumplings and vegetarian nachos) and of course I had to try a bit of everything!

This was followed by an ecstatic yoga rave at lululemon athletica and delicious post-rave peanut butter goodie balls! Finally when I got home for dinner I enjoyed some nori rolls with veggies, Japanese guacamole, greens from the garden... and more of that chocolate :)

I didn't overeat but I sometimes overindulge in some of my favourite treats: mostly dark chocolate, coconut ice cream and guacamole nori rolls, three things I haven't been eating as much of recently.

I hope this will show you that NOBODY IS PERFECT - even those of us who provide this guidance to others professionally!

Today I realised there is much to be said for planning. As much as I love eating whatever I feel like in that moment, I also need to prepare in order to ensure I’ll actually have food that I’m desiring in the house. I'm a huge advocate of intuitive eating, but we can’t be very intuitive with our meals unless we have prepped and planned a little bit, right? When I am best prepared for eating in an energising way, here is what I have on hand:

• Avocados – both ripe and and unripe
• Ripe fruits in the fridge (watermelon and organic Fuji apples are my favourite, followed by a killer organic pear), I also usually have frozen berries, some ripe bananas sliced into chunks in plastic bags in the freezer, and unripe bananas ripening on the counter
• Plenty of wholegrain mustard and lemon and limes because this is how I love to dress my salads
• Plenty of garden greens such as kale, rocket and silverbeet, and other vegetables such as corn, tomatoes, beets, carrots, cabbage and big juicy olives for salads
• Potato, sweet potato and pumpkin for epic roasted wedges 
• Organic eggs and wild salmon (when I crave an omelette or a piece of fish, nothing else will do)
• Dark chocolate bars

So what is your most common slip up or indulgence that you easily overdo? Most importantly, how do you tell yourself that it's NOT that big of a deal (because it's not) and pick yourself up and brush yourself off the next day?

By the way, the Yoga Rave was ridiculously fun. Thanks Gregory Dunn for a super-pumped class full of ground-thumping laughter, glo-sticks and sweat! I'm lucky enough to be an ambassador for lululemon athletica and together with chef Palasis, we'll be holding a Raw Chocolate and Guilt-Free Dessert workshop at the Robina store on October 15th - see lululemon athletica Robina's facebook page for details and to book your complementary seat. As you can understand places are limited so get in sooner rather than later :)

I've done a survey of friends and family, and have found that of all meals, people find DINNER is the hardest to "eat healthy".

Fruit or smoothies for breakfast are easy enough, and if you're living in a city there are fast and healthy homemade and takeaway options a-plenty for lunch.

But DINNER... let's face it! After a full day of work, kids, driving, gym, exercise, email, computers, family, shopping centres and iphones, sometimes, you just can't be bothered.

Come evening, for MANY of us, whatever is the easiest thing in front of you gets eaten.

So let's make sure that what you have in front of you is as healthy, tasty and convenient as possible! Here are my top fastest, near-zero prep dinners that help me out when I've got no mojo left!

1. Chemical-free Frozen Cuisine. Although processed frozen meals are not ideal, you can get wholefood and/or organic frozen stews, casseroles and soups from the freezer section of health food shops and even from supermarkets! The Pitango brand organic soups, curries and risottos, are high quality packaged wholefood and tasty. Ready to go, you can bung these on the stove, do something else for 5 minutes (with intermittent stirrings) and return to a warm, hearty dinner. You can get these from the fridge section of Coles, Woolworths and some delis.

2. Sunday afternoon delight. For the slightly less lazy among us, making large batches of homemade soup, curry or stew on a Sunday to freeze and eat over the next week saves money and time later on. You can make your not-quite-gourmet 3 litre batch of lentil soup more exciting by adding flavoursome extras – olive tapenades, guacamoles, baba ganoush, vegetable-based packaged dips, bruschetta sundried tomato mix, olives, capers, sea salt and pepper, and fresh herbs or even squeeze tube herbs, chilli and garlic.

3. Fast dinner ideas when I haven't done the Sunday arvo cookup thing. It doesn't have to be a formal one-plate, sit down meal - just as long as there is some healthy food at dinner and it's yummy!

* Tinned tuna/salmon with steamed packaged veggies (chopped fresh is always better, of course) and corn chips
* Organic goats cheese rolled in cabbage, silverbeet or spinach leaves with whole-grain mustard and sprouts, and a slice of toasted essene sprouted bread with butter
* Punnets of cherry tomatoes, snow peas, other easy access veggies to eat as finger food with your cheesy handrolls, fast soups etc
* Blended salads - everything you'd put in a salad without all the chopping, just blend and go. This is especially nice with avocado, fresh tomato and miso!
* If you feel like a sweet snack before dinner, try fruit, nut butters with banana, or blended green or fruit smoothies (banana and almond butter is very yummy)

On days where you really can't bring yourself to the kitchen, remember there ARE healthy take out options - if you're ultra keen, talk to me about healthy Japanese, Thai, Mexican and other takeout and restaurant options. As a foodie and lover of exotic food I'd be happy to talk your ears off!

Know that these options are a temporary solution and that we all go through fab phases and BLAH phases. In a perfect world, we'd mindfully sit down to a homemade, organic dinner and big raw veggie salad every night! But for now, just do what you can.

As you know, looking after yourself  will give you extra energy and resilience to get through any rough patch you are experiencing at the moment. If you can get your nutrition sorted enough, you're supporting yourself from the inside out.

And then everything else becomes easier.

Let me know if you have any other ideas for low-effort healthy wholefood dinners, I'd love to hear your suggestions!

Look after yourself,
Casey xox