The word "POP" pops up all over the place! Pop Quiz (always irritating). Pop Culture ("The Honeymooners" or a Jay-Z and Beyonce duet). Soda Pop (always bad for you). And then there's Popcorn (yummy).

But did you know that there's evidence (more research is needed) that farmed salmon and other farmed fish deliver concentrated doses of POPs (persistent organic pollutants) such as PCBs, dioxin and DDT?

These are immune-, reproductive-, endocrine- and neurological-disrupting pollutants (now banned in the U.S. and many other countries) that still show up in food. POPs can trigger weight gain, insulin resistance, higher glucose levels, diabetes and a whole lot more.

One study found that mice who ate farmed salmon gained twice as much weight as mice fed an equal amount of fat from other sources. Another found that the average dioxin level in farmed salmon is 11 times higher than in wild salmon. In addition, farmed salmon are fed a diet that changes their fat content, so they deliver a lot less of anti-inflammatory omega-3s than wild salmon.

But wild salmon (usually Sockeye, Coho and Chinook) are low in mercury and aren't fed antibiotics like farm-raised.

That means it's good for kids and pregnant women, avoids the antibiotic-resistance issue and spares your gut biome antibiotic damage that may contribute to weight gain and insulin resistance.

So go wild!

Cook up some wild salmon every week (you'll probably have to get it frozen from September to May), and you'll help protect your brain, eyes and digestive system.

© 2014 Michael Roizen, M.D. and Mehmet Oz, M.D.
Distributed by King Features Syndicate, Inc.