Eating oysters is environmentally friendly. Oysters are on the Seafood Watch list as a “Best Choice,” meaning that seafood in this category is abundant, well-managed and caught or farmed in environmentally friendly ways.

Oysters are good for your garden. Oyster shells are high in calcium, which helps balance your soil’s pH levels. Calcium also helps build strong cell walls, which leads to healthier plants. Just don’t throw your oyster shells in the garden, however. They should be finely ground — or you can simply purchase the ground oyster shell lime at your local garden center.

And, yes… for centuries, oysters, have been considered to be an aphrodisiac. American and Italian researchers reported that oysters were rich in amino acids, which trigger increased levels of sexual hormones. Their high zinc content is also said to aid the production of testosterone and spermatogenesis. But a 2015 paper co-authored by Michael Krychman, MD, published in Sexual Medicine Reviews, may throw a wrench, er, shell, into the theory. He stated that while zinc is “an essential nutrient for testosterone production and spermatogenesis,” and contains “specific amino acids and serotonin, which are integral in the neural pathway of the pleasure response,” no scientific study concluded there’s a connection. His advice? “If [people] like eating oysters and it makes them feel better, then why not?”

We explore further benefits in our Wellness department.