The claim that fish is good for your brain is not just an old wives' tale. As your body's control centre, your brain keeps your heart beating, lungs breathing and lets you move, feel and think. That's why it's a good idea to keep your brain in peak working condition.

吃鱼对大脑有益并不是无稽之谈。作为身体的控制中心，你的大脑保持着你的心脏跳动、肺部呼吸，让你去动、去感受、去思考。因此让大脑处于最佳工作状态是一个好想法。

The foods you eat play a key role in keeping your brain healthy - and can improve specific mental tasks such as memory and concentration. When people talk about brain foods, oily fish is often at the top of the list. The main ones to go for include salmon¹, trout², mackerel, herring, sardines³, pilchards, kippers, fresh tuna, salmon and trout.

你所吃的食物对保持大脑健康起着关键作用--而且能提高特定的心理任务，比如改善记忆力、使注意力更集中。当人们谈论健脑饮食时，富含脂肪的鱼总是位列榜首。主要包括三文鱼、鳟鱼、鲭鱼、鲱鱼、沙丁鱼、腌鱼、新鲜的金枪鱼、三文鱼和鳟鱼。

All are rich sources of omega-3 fatty acids - which is important because about 60 per cent of your brain is made of fat, and half of that fat is the omega-3 kind. Your brain uses omega-3s to build brain and nerve cells, and these fats are essential for learning and memory.

这些鱼都富含欧米茄3脂肪酸--为什么这很重要？因为大脑的60%都是由脂肪构成的，而一半的脂肪都是欧米茄3类脂肪。大脑用欧米茄3脂肪构建大脑和神经细胞，这些脂肪对于学习和记忆至关重要。

Omega-3s have some additional benefits for your brain - they may slow age-related mental decline and help ward⁴ off Alzheimer's disease. And they may help make the "good mood" brain chemical, serotonin.

欧米茄3脂肪酸还能给大脑带来其它好处--可能会减缓与年龄相关的精神衰退疾病、帮助抵御阿尔兹海默症。而且还能帮助产生"让心情变好的"大脑化学物质--5-羟色胺。

Not getting enough omega-3s is linked to learning impairments, as well as depression and memory loss. One study found people who ate baked or grilled⁵ fish regularly had more grey matter in their brains. And that's the stuff that hosts most of the nerve cells which control decision-making, memory and emotion.

身体没有获得足够的欧米茄3脂肪酸会导致学习障碍以及抑郁和记忆力衰退。一项研究发现：经常吃烤鱼的人大脑中含有更多的灰质。而灰质是控制决策、记忆力和情感的神经细胞密集的部位。

To gain all these benefits, health experts recommend we eat at least two portions of fish each week - one of which should be from the varieties above that are rich in omega-3s. The recommendations are based on a serving of around 140g, that's about 170g before cooking. So if you're only eating small portions - for example half a can of tuna provides around 60g of fish - you may need to eat fish more often.

为了获得所有益处，健康专家建议我们每周至少吃两份鱼--其中一种应该是上述几种富含欧米茄3脂肪的鱼类。专家建议的一份量是140克左右，也就是说在烹饪之前约170克。所以如果你只是吃了一丁点儿鱼--比如，半罐的金枪鱼含有60克鱼--也许你就得更频繁的吃鱼了。

It isn't just the brain that benefits. Omega-3 may help relieve joint pain in rheumatoid arthritis⁶, while seafood⁷ helps bones, teeth, blood pressure , the immune system and processing food.

不仅吃鱼有益大脑，而且欧米茄3脂肪酸还能有助于缓解类风湿性关节炎导致的关节疼痛，而海鲜有助于骨骼、牙齿健康、血压正常、免疫系统增强、并帮助消化食物。