Caviar: a tablespoon of omega-3, salt and cholesterol

Pooling 17 trials in healthy adults, a meta-analysis found that added dietary cholesterol raised blood total cholesterol by 11.2 mg/dL (95% CI 6.4 to 15.9) and LDL by 6.7 mg/dL. Most of that cholesterol came from eggs, and the cohorts in the same review were too mixed to say anything firm about heart disease. It matters here because caviar is dense in it. In US survey data a 16 g tablespoon carries 94 mg of cholesterol, 240 mg of sodium and about 42 calories, figures from a single averaged entry for black and red granular caviar, and sturgeon and salmon roe differ. That same tablespoon holds about 1 g of the long-chain omega-3 fats DHA and EPA, plus 3.2 ug of vitamin B12, more than the 2.4 ug Daily Value. We found no study of sturgeon caviar itself on heart outcomes.

The numbers, per 3.5 oz (100 g)

As people eat it, per 3.5 oz (100 g)

How much is actually in it

• US survey data list caviar at 3.8 g DHA and 2.7 g EPA per 3.5 oz (100 g), about 1 g of the two long-chain omega-3 fats in a 16 g tablespoon. — US household measures, FNDDS food code 26211100 (n = 1 food code) Evidence E source
  DHA 3.8 g/100 g (0.6 g per tablespoon); EPA 2.741 g/100 g (0.4 g per tablespoon)
• UK food tables list caviare bottled in brine and drained at 2120 mg sodium, 285 mg cholesterol and 92 calories per 3.5 oz (100 g), a different product form from US granular caviar. — UK food composition tables, code 16-272 (n = 1 food code) Evidence E source
  Per 100 g: sodium 2120 mg, cholesterol 285 mg, energy 92 calories, protein 10.9 g, fat 5.4 g (USDA granular: 1500 mg, 588 mg, 264 calories)

What a real portion looks like

• In US survey data a tablespoon of caviar weighs 16 g and carries about 42 calories, 240 mg sodium, 94 mg cholesterol and 3.2 ug vitamin B12. — US household measures, FNDDS food code 26211100 (n = 1 food code) Evidence E source
  Per 100 g: 264 calories, sodium 1500 mg, cholesterol 588 mg, B12 20 ug, selenium 65.5 ug; per 16 g tablespoon 42.2 calories, 240 mg, 94.1 mg, 3.2 ug, 10.5 ug

What your body absorbs

• In a double-blind randomized study, 25 g a day of ordinary caviar paste for three weeks raised plasma EPA by 51% and DHA by 24%, but also raised a lipid peroxidation marker by 26%. — 16 healthy non-smokers (8 men, 8 women, age 42 +/- 12), 25 g caviar paste daily for 3 weeks (n = 16) Evidence B source
  Ordinary paste: EPA +51%, DHA +24%, total n-3 +27%, TBA-MDA +26%; fish-oil enriched paste: EPA +100%, DHA +29%, no rise in TBA-MDA
• In 5937 Norwegians aged 47 to 49 and 71 to 74, vitamin B12 from fish tracked with plasma B12, though B12 from dairy raised it more for the same intake. — 5937 adults in two age groups (47-49 and 71-74), Hordaland Homocysteine Study, Norway (n = 5937) Evidence C source
  Plasma B12 rose with B12 from fish and dairy (P for trend <0.001); plateau near 10 ug/day total intake

What it does to your health

• Pooling 17 trials, a meta-analysis found added dietary cholesterol raised serum total cholesterol by 11.2 mg/dL and LDL by 6.7 mg/dL, while cohorts showed no clear link to heart disease. — healthy adults: 19 trials with 632 subjects and 17 cohorts with 361,923 subjects (n = 632) Evidence A source
  Total cholesterol +11.2 mg/dL (95% CI 6.4 to 15.9); LDL +6.7 mg/dL (95% CI 1.7 to 11.7); HDL +3.2 mg/dL

Safety, limits and interactions

• Fish roe is the sixth most common food allergen in Japan, and in 51 roe-sensitized children 14% reacted to an oral challenge with cooked pollock roe. — 51 patients sensitized to pollock roe, median age 6.8 years, Japan, 2006-2016 (n = 51) Evidence C source
  7 of 51 (14%) positive oral food challenge, all mild, no anaphylaxis; 35% had prior immediate reactions to salmon roe
• A case report describes a 2-year-old with no known allergies who developed anaphylaxis and bowel intussusception after eating salmon roe for the first time. — one 2-year-old boy (n = 1) Evidence D source
  Dyspnoea, wheezing, urticaria and colo-colic intussusception; IgE-mediated salmon roe allergy

The bottom line

The omega-3 does reach the blood. In a double-blind randomized study in 16 healthy non-smokers, 25 g a day of a Scandinavian cod roe paste for three weeks raised plasma EPA by 51% and DHA by 24%. The same paste raised a marker of fat oxidation by 26%, a surrogate measure in groups of 8 people, while a version enriched with fish oil left that marker unchanged. For vitamin B12, observational data from 5937 Norwegians tie more B12 from fish to higher blood B12, though dairy raised it more for the same intake and caviar was not counted on its own. Check which product you are buying. UK tables list caviar bottled in brine at 2120 mg sodium and 285 mg cholesterol per 3.5 oz (100 g), against 1500 mg and 588 mg per 3.5 oz (100 g) for US granular caviar, a different form of the product. We found no study of what the salt in caviar does to people with high blood pressure, and mercury in caviar was not measured in the data we have. We also have no data here on caviar in pregnancy. The real caution is allergy. Fish roe is the sixth most common food allergen in Japan. Of 51 Japanese children already sensitized to pollock roe, 7 (14%) reacted when given cooked pollock roe under supervision, all mildly and with no anaphylaxis. A case report describes a 2-year-old with no known allergies who had anaphylaxis and a bowel intussusception the first time he ate salmon roe. If you or your child react to fish roe, leave caviar out, and treat a small child's first taste as a new food like any other.

Sources

1. cvr-r8-02 · reference dataset
   FNDDS 2706332 Caviar: PUFA 22:6 n-3 (DHA) 3.8 g/100 g, 1 tablespoon 16 g 0.6 g · PUFA 20:5 n-3 (EPA) 2.741 g/100 g, 1 tablespoon 0.4 g
   USDA FNDDS 2021-2023 · checked 2026-09-29
2. cvr-r8-03 · reference dataset
   CoFID 16-272 Caviare, bottled in brine, drained: Sodium 2120 mg · Cholesterol 285.0 mg · Energy 92 kcal · Protein 10.9 g · Fat 5.4 g per 100 g
   CoFID 2021, Public Health England, OGL v3.0 · checked 2026-09-29
3. cvr-r8-01 · reference dataset
   FNDDS 2706332 Caviar: 1 tablespoon 16 g · Energy 264 kcal/100 g (42.2 kcal) · Sodium 1500 mg/100 g (240.0 mg) · Cholesterol 588 mg/100 g (94.1 mg) · Vitamin B-12 20 ug/100 g (3.2 ug) · Selenium 65.5 ug/100 g (10.5 ug)
   USDA FNDDS 2021-2023 · checked 2026-09-29
4. cvr-r8-04 · randomized controlled trial
   The fatty acids EPA and DHA, as well as the sum of all n-3 fatty acids, increased significantly in both caviar groups but more in the group given fish oil caviar paste (EPA: +51%, P<0.05 and +100%, P<0.001, respectively; DHA: +24%, P<0.01 and +29%, P<0.001, respectively; sum of n-3:+27%, P<0.05 and +40%, P<0.001, respectively). Lipid peroxidation, measured as the thiobarbituric acid-malondialdehyde adduct, was increased by 26% (P<0.05) after intake of ordinary caviar paste, but was unchanged after intake of fish oil-enriched caviar paste.
   Eur J Clin Nutr, 2003 · checked 2026-09-29
5. cvr-r8-06 · cross-sectional study
   Plasma vitamin B-12 was associated with intakes of increasing amounts of vitamin B-12 from dairy products or fish (P for trend <0.001 for both) but not with intakes of vitamin B-12 from meat or eggs. For the same content of vitamin B-12, intake from dairy products led to the greatest increase in plasma vitamin B-12.
   Am J Clin Nutr, 2009 · checked 2026-09-29
6. cvr-r8-05 · meta-analysis
   Dietary cholesterol statistically significantly increased both serum total cholesterol (17 trials; net change: 11.2 mg/dL; 95% CI: 6.4, 15.9) and low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol (14 trials; net change: 6.7 mg/dL; 95% CI: 1.7, 11.7 mg/dL).
   Am J Clin Nutr, 2015 · checked 2026-09-29
7. cvr-r8-07 · retrospective cohort
   Anaphylaxis and immediate-type fish roe allergies have been reported worldwide, and, in Japan, fish roe is the sixth most common food allergen. ... Seven patients (14%) had a positive OFC. There was no anaphylaxis.
   Allergol Int, 2018 · checked 2026-09-29
8. cvr-r8-08 · case report
   The patient without known allergies complained of severe abdominal pain following ingestion of salmon roe for the first time. Dyspnea, wheezing and generalized urticaria also developed.
   Pediatr Int, 2013 · checked 2026-09-29