Mollusks - Nutritional Properties

What are Mollusks

The term molluscs identifies a group of marine, terrestrial or aquatic beings, characterized by a soft body; they have neither a skeleton nor a carapace, they breathe through gills and their bloodstream has a heart. Regarding reproduction, some molluscs are hermaphrodites and others are distinguished by separate sexes.

Classification

The molluscs, ordinarily, are subdivided into:

1. Cephalopods: provided with internal shell or without shell, which are further distinguished in:
   • Dibranchiati:
     • Decapods: with ten tentacles, such as cuttlefish, squid, squid, etc.
     • Ottopodi: or with eight tentacles, like the octopus, the dormouse
   • Tetrabranchiati:
     • Nautilus
2. Gastropods: univalve and with external shell, like snails, snails (of sea, river and earth), limpets, sea ears etc.
3. Lamellibranchs: bivalves and with external shell, such as mussels (mussels), clams, fasolari, telline, canolicchi, scallops, sea truffles, sea dates, oysters, pinna nobilis etc.

Nutritional properties of lamellibranchs-bivalves

In principle it is possible to state that the caloric content of bivalve molluscs is PARTICULARLY low; in fact, on average, it is around 70-85 kcal per 100g of edible portion.

Bivalve molluscs possess rather similar nutritional characteristics; in terms of macronutrients they provide about 10-11g of protein, 1-3% of lipids (mainly POLINSATURI, therefore "good" fats) and sometimes (for example in mussels or oysters) traces of complex Carbohydrates (glycogen) . It should be remembered that bivalve molluscs possess a non-negligible and variable cholesterol content based on the period of fertility of the organisms; if, during reproduction, the synthesis of cholesterol increases to support hormonal production, consequently the relative food content in cholesterol can undergo even significant fluctuations.

From the micronutritional point of view, bivalve molluscs provide a significant amount of cobalamin (vitamin B12 - particularly lacking in vegan dietary regimes ) and in varying amounts other vitamins of the B group. Furthermore, by examining the mineral profile there is a significant intake of emic ( also lacking in vegetarian and vegan dietary regimes ), iodine ( whose dietary supplementation seems to be uniquely useful for achieving the recommended ration ), zinc and selenium. On the other hand, the frequent consumption of bivalve molluscs has a not negligible inconvenience; they filter water for food, if caught in the sea they contain very high amounts of sodium, which makes them absolutely not recommended in the diet against hypertension.

From the point of view of digestibility, bivalve molluscs are characterized by the reduced content of connective tissue, which reduces the time of gastric permanence making them suitable for the dietary treatment of digestive difficulties, provided they are consumed in the APPROPRIATE PORTIONS.

Homemade Strozzapreti with Vongole Sauce

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Nutritional properties of cephalopods

Cephalopod molluscs have a chemical and nutritional composition similar to that of bivalves and lean fish; the energy supply is equally reduced, around 60-75 kcal per 100g of edible portion;

the protein content is between 11 and 14g while the lipid content is estimated at around 1-2g; also in this case the long chain polyunsaturated fatty acids prevail, a noteworthy nutritional aspect especially in the treatment of subjects potentially at risk of cardiovascular compromise. No traces of glycogen are identified and the cholesterol intake seems moderate, around 65-70mg (in this respect the typical seasonal variations of bivalve molluscs were not found).

By analyzing the micronutritional framework of cephalopod molluscs, there are no significant discrepancies with respect to the cited values ​​for bivalve molluscs, except for the difference in the intake of food sodium. While bivalves are characterized by the high quantity of sea water that they pour into the cooking water during the preparation of the dishes, the cephalopod molluscs do not, therefore the final sodium content makes them more suitable for hypertensive dietotherapy.

Nutritional properties of gastropods

With regard to gastropod molluscs, nutritional information is rather limited due to the scarcity of consumption on a national scale.

Also in this case no significant differences are observed with respect to what is reported on bivalve molluscs and on cephalopods, although it should be noted that there is a greater heterogeneity on the composition of marine and terrestrial gastropods. The energy supply is once again moderate, even if slightly higher, around 100kcal. The portion of carbohydrates seems more significant and reaches 6g per 100g of edible portion, as well as protein: 17.5g. The lipids are again scarce, around 1-2g, but it is not possible to trace more in-depth information on the nature of fatty acids and on the amount of cholesterol.

From the micronutritional point of view, there is an EXCELLENT intake of iron (which exceeds 3%), phosphorus, potassium and once again sodium (> 300mg / 100 grams of mollusc).

From the point of view of conservation, in shellfish the phenomena of alteration are similar to those that are observed in fish and crustaceans.

Bibliography:

• Edible animals of the Italian seas - A. Palombi, M. Santarelli - pag
• Food composition tables - INRAN (National Food Research and Nutrition Institute)