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FDA Warns Pregnant Women of Dangerous Levels of Mercury In Tuna

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m5The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) released new recommendations on how much and what type of fish should be consumed. The new guidelines have been directed towards pregnant women and children, although it would be wise for everyone to take a look. Apparently canned tuna is a big “no no” due to high levels of mercury.

It is often the case that when browsing through articles in the food sections of most healthy living websites, every second or third piece contradicts an earlier published one. This ultimately leads to quite a big confusion, and takes away the trust people have in any article of such sort.

The reason why I give such an introduction is because this particular piece is about fish, a food source that has always been regarded as the must-have-at-least-once-a-week item in your diet plan. Such news are very easy to dismiss, as you would likely do with every other one that says nuts are not good for you, or fruits make you fat, etc. etc., you know which kind of articles I am referring to.

What makes this different from the type of news you can read on daily basis, is the fact that the new recommendations are issued by highly reliable sources- FDA and EPA. The numbers that are presented are backed up by real evidence and are given solely as an advice to encourage healthy eating, especially among pregnant women. In addition, no one here rejects fish consumption, and the authors emphasise that the nutritional value of seafood products is extremely important to maintain healthy bodies.

However, the new recommendations raise a highly relevant and important issue. Fish contains mercury, the toxic metal that gets accumulated in fish bodies and is transferred up trough the food chain, and in some particular types of fish these levels are extremely dangerous.

Among the most highly intoxicated with mercury fish that should be avoided are the shark, the king mackerel, the swordfish, the tilefish, and the very dangerous one- tuna. The last one is of a particular importance, because it can be found in pretty much every kitchen. It is one of the most popular types of fish, most commonly sold in cans, and it is consumed by many on daily basis.

The recommendations are provided for the benefit of pregnant women, breastfeeding mothers, and young children, who should consume fish with as low levels on mercury as possible I do believe, however, that everyone, even those outside these three groups, should take a look through the list of recommendations and levels of mercury concentrations, and think again before planning the next seafood meal.

Image (c) EcoWatch

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1 COMMENT

  1. So why is she holding a trout in the picture. Oh and as far as believing the EPA or the FDA on anything….well the EPA says the puddle in my back yard is a wetlands and must be protected even though it’s not there 99.99% of the time….idiots. The FDA is the organization along with others that gave us the food recommendations and serving amounts taught in our schools for years that promoted the wrong diet and now America is fat and over weight. You know how it goes butter is bad and oil is good but later they change their minds and say oops we were wrong, sorry your fat and heart failure is rampant.  Give me a break.

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