More and more Mercury in fish - Tilted Forum Project Discussion Community

HarmlessRabbit · 03-21-2004, 12:08 PM

FYI, a lot of people still seem to think of fish as being always healthy to eat. Unfortunately, pollution of the oceans is making this less and less true. Unfortunately the "spin" from food lobbyists is making the truth hard to decipher.

A local tv station here in the bay area bought a bunch of market fish and tested it, and actually found higher mercury levels that the levels listed here.

So, if you like fish, keep eating it, just follow some of the guidelines below:

http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=stor...h_dc&printer=1

Quote:

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Shark, swordfish, king mackerel and tilefish should be off the menu for pregnant women, nursing mothers, children and women who may become pregnant because they contain too much mercury, the U.S. government said on Friday.

Health officials said adults can eat up to 12 ounces -- two average meals -- a week of seafood that was lower in mercury such as shrimp, canned light tuna, salmon, pollock and catfish. Only half that amount of albacore, or "white," tuna, should be eaten per week.

Consumer and environmental groups said the government had soft-pedaled the risk from eating large amounts of white tuna. "Tuna is a really popular fish and some people eat a whole lot of it," said Diana Zuckerman of the National Center for Policy Research for Women and Children.

While fish and shellfish are a good source of protein, nearly all seafood contains traces of methylmercury. High levels of mercury in the bloodstream of fetuses and young children can impair development of the nervous system.

In a joint advisory that updated guidelines issued separately, the Food and Drug Administration (news - web sites) and the Environmental Protection Agency (news - web sites) said shark, swordfish, king mackerel and tilefish should not be eaten by pregnant women, nursing mothers, children and women who may become pregnant. Methylmercury levels are highest in longer-lived, large fish.

The FDA and EPA said adults could eat up to 12 ounces per week of fish low in mercury. But they should eat no more than six ounces of white tuna or fish caught by family and friends.

The same guidelines on weekly consumption apply to children but they should be given smaller portions, officials said.

TUNA ALSO HIGH IN MERCURY

Fish sticks and fish sandwiches commonly are made using fish low in mercury, FDA said. Tuna steaks are higher in mercury and should be limited to six ounces a week.

On Thursday, the European Union (news - web sites)'s food safety authority recommended pregnant women limit consumption of fish, including swordfish and tuna, due to high mercury levels.

U.S. consumer activists said as a rule, light tuna had higher levels of mercury than shrimp, salmon, pollock and catfish, which were listed together as "five commonly eaten fish that are low in mercury."

An EPA researcher has estimated about 630,000 U.S. children are born annually with unsafe levels of mercury in the blood.

"What concerns me is how they buried this tuna information," said Zuckerman, by putting it toward the bottom of the one-page advisory.

White tuna contains three times as much mercury as light tuna, said Jane Halloran of Consumers Union. "It is essential FDA warn women of child-bearing age to limit their intake of albacore white tuna," she said.

The Environmental Working Group said the FDA "has actually made a bad situation worse, by encouraging consumption of albacore tuna at clearly unsafe levels." EWG said some white tuna can contain excessive amounts of mercury.

Trade groups representing the food industry said the new advisory showed the benefits of fish as well as how to limit exposure to mercury. The U.S. Tuna Foundation described tuna as "nature's healthy fast food," low in fat and high in nutrients.

Tophat665 · 03-21-2004, 12:25 PM

I guess is beats having high levels of fish in Uranus.

Seriously though, if the go'vt would just stop coal fired power plants from pumping Mercury into the air, this would straighten itself out pretty quickly.

Kinda sucks, though. My kids love love love tuna sashimi.

BenChuy · 03-24-2004, 05:32 AM

Most of the tuna sashimi i have had was not white, so your kids should be ok.

Also, on this line, my local waterways (south central US) are at incredibly unsafe levels of Hg. The buried recommendation, and this was probing by phone about a year ago, is that you should only eat 2 fish a _YEAR_ from the streams and lakes. Now, that is bad.

alec · 03-24-2004, 09:50 PM

well, if you feed your kids enough tuna, at least youll get a handicapped parking sticker out of it

Peryn · 03-25-2004, 09:49 AM

Wow...when i go out fishing its pretty much ALL albacore (white tuna they call it) that we pull in. And since ya go down into Mexico for it..... eh, oh well. We bring a helluva lot, but dont eat it very often. Course when i do i go through much more than 6-12oz of it. Oh well, not something im gonna really worry about, even though i probably should.

BigBlueWrecking · 03-25-2004, 10:55 AM

I think this is only a real problem for pregnant women, which I am not.

bing bing · 03-25-2004, 04:37 PM

I no longer eat any seafood. Last thing i need is a further defective brain.

irateplatypus · 03-26-2004, 09:06 AM

i find it hard to believe that this is really true. seriously, 6 oz's of albacore tuna a week? the little cans you buy at the grocery store of albacore are exactly 6 oz. surely if it were unsafe to eat more than one of them a week the whistle would be blown a bit louder.

jbrooks544 · 03-26-2004, 06:31 PM

If fish didn't have mercury it would be great for you. Mercury has gotten too bad to eat fish all that much. My doctor has put me, and all his patients on TWO "fish oil" pills per day. You get all the benifits of fish goodness without the mercury. He knows of some very good studies that show benefits of fish oil. He also knows of the very real mercury risk from studies and from testing his own patients - scary mercury in big fish eaters.

Boo · 03-26-2004, 06:38 PM

I take fish oil also.

I was in North Carolina in 1998-2001 and was amazed at their river conditions. Flounder were being caught 30 river miles up the Neuse with nasty sores on them. The river banks were so polluted that they were brown for 20-30 feet up the bank. I still get pissed when someone from NC preaches to Alaskans about ANWR and pollution.

exponent_doobie · 03-26-2004, 09:03 PM

Do not forget about shellfish as well, such as mussels and oysters. They are filter feeders and so they suck the nutrients out of the water they take in and let the water flow back out again. With all the pollutants and mercury however, they are absorbing much more of those and are increasingly dangerous as time goes by.

nash · 03-27-2004, 07:14 AM

Ah crap. I eat canned albacore tuna for breakfast (I stick it in my omelet) every single day. I was thinking of moving up to 2 cans per day, too. It was a very efficient way of getting my daily protein but now I don't know what to do!

cait987 · 03-27-2004, 09:41 AM

Quote:

Ah crap. I eat canned albacore tuna for breakfast (I stick it in my omelet) every single day. I was thinking of moving up to 2 cans per day, too. It was a very efficient way of getting my daily protein but now I don't know what to do!

If you like canned tuna you should really try canned chicken, about same amount of protein etc and tastes much better, only real big issue is it costs more. I eat 8 oz of light tuna a day for lunch and I eat chicken the rest of the day, is mercury poisoning gonna stop me from eating tuna? No, why? Because of the fact that if it was really as dangerous as they are making it sound it definatley would have warning labels etc on it. I mean I see people buying 50 - 100 cans of tuna in one trip run, if it was really so dangerous I imagine theyd have to put some back.

Ps: How could that smiling fish on the front of albacore tuna be so dangerous? ^^

jbrooks544 · 03-31-2004, 06:26 AM

Tuna and you:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn...2004Mar29.html

more here:
http://www.google.com/search?q=%22me...utf-8&oe=utf-8

03-21-2004, 12:25 PM	#2 (permalink)
Tophat665 Minion of the scaléd ones Location: Northeast Jesusland	I guess is beats having high levels of fish in Uranus. Seriously though, if the go'vt would just stop coal fired power plants from pumping Mercury into the air, this would straighten itself out pretty quickly. Kinda sucks, though. My kids love love love tuna sashimi. __________________ Light a man a fire, and he will be warm while it burns. Set a man on fire, and he will be warm for the rest of his life.

03-24-2004, 09:50 PM	#4 (permalink)
alec Insane Location: Washington DC	well, if you feed your kids enough tuna, at least youll get a handicapped parking sticker out of it Last edited by alec; 03-24-2004 at 10:53 PM..

03-25-2004, 09:49 AM	#5 (permalink)
Peryn Junkie Location: San Diego, CA.	Wow...when i go out fishing its pretty much ALL albacore (white tuna they call it) that we pull in. And since ya go down into Mexico for it..... eh, oh well. We bring a helluva lot, but dont eat it very often. Course when i do i go through much more than 6-12oz of it. Oh well, not something im gonna really worry about, even though i probably should. __________________ Dont cry kid, It's not your fault you suck.

03-26-2004, 09:06 AM	#8 (permalink)
irateplatypus can't help but laugh Location: dar al-harb	i find it hard to believe that this is really true. seriously, 6 oz's of albacore tuna a week? the little cans you buy at the grocery store of albacore are exactly 6 oz. surely if it were unsafe to eat more than one of them a week the whistle would be blown a bit louder. __________________ If you will not fight when your victory will be sure and not too costly, you may come to the moment when you will have to fight with all the odds against you and only a precarious chance for survival. There may even be a worse case. You may have to fight when there is no hope of victory, because it is better to perish than to live as slaves. ~ Winston Churchill

03-26-2004, 06:38 PM	#10 (permalink)
Boo Leave me alone! Location: Alaska, USA	I take fish oil also. I was in North Carolina in 1998-2001 and was amazed at their river conditions. Flounder were being caught 30 river miles up the Neuse with nasty sores on them. The river banks were so polluted that they were brown for 20-30 feet up the bank. I still get pissed when someone from NC preaches to Alaskans about ANWR and pollution. __________________ Back button again, I must be getting old.

03-24-2004, 05:32 AM	#3 (permalink)
BenChuy Insane Location: About 70 pixals above this...	Most of the tuna sashimi i have had was not white, so your kids should be ok. Also, on this line, my local waterways (south central US) are at incredibly unsafe levels of Hg. The buried recommendation, and this was probing by phone about a year ago, is that you should only eat 2 fish a _YEAR_ from the streams and lakes. Now, that is bad.

03-25-2004, 10:55 AM	#6 (permalink)
BigBlueWrecking Psycho	I think this is only a real problem for pregnant women, which I am not.

03-25-2004, 04:37 PM	#7 (permalink)
bing bing Addict Location: Melbourne, Australia	I no longer eat any seafood. Last thing i need is a further defective brain.

03-26-2004, 06:31 PM	#9 (permalink)
jbrooks544 Addict	If fish didn't have mercury it would be great for you. Mercury has gotten too bad to eat fish all that much. My doctor has put me, and all his patients on TWO "fish oil" pills per day. You get all the benifits of fish goodness without the mercury. He knows of some very good studies that show benefits of fish oil. He also knows of the very real mercury risk from studies and from testing his own patients - scary mercury in big fish eaters.

03-26-2004, 09:03 PM	#11 (permalink)
exponent_doobie Tilted	Do not forget about shellfish as well, such as mussels and oysters. They are filter feeders and so they suck the nutrients out of the water they take in and let the water flow back out again. With all the pollutants and mercury however, they are absorbing much more of those and are increasingly dangerous as time goes by.

03-27-2004, 07:14 AM	#12 (permalink)
nash Psycho	Ah crap. I eat canned albacore tuna for breakfast (I stick it in my omelet) every single day. I was thinking of moving up to 2 cans per day, too. It was a very efficient way of getting my daily protein but now I don't know what to do!

03-31-2004, 06:26 AM	#14 (permalink)
jbrooks544 Addict	Tuna and you: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn...2004Mar29.html more here: http://www.google.com/search?q=%22me...utf-8&oe=utf-8