Tuna - a real source of Mercury

Tuna – A real Source of Mercury

“Tsukiji Fish market and Tuna edit”. Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 via Commons – https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Tsukiji_Fish_market_and_Tuna_edit.jpg#/media/File:Tsukiji_Fish_market_and_Tuna_edit.jpg

Tuna: “It doesn’t take too many tuna fish sandwiches to exceed the safety threshold for mercury exposure. For example, a child who weighs less than 60 pounds should not eat more than two ounces of canned albacore (white) tuna per week.”

“A sandwich made with half a can of albacore (white) tuna has 130% of the EPA’s safe mercury limit for a third-grader. The same sandwich made with canned salmon, though? Only 3%.That’s not a daily limit either; that’s per week.” – Vitals Magazine

“Nearly all fish and shellfish have at least trace amounts of methylmercury (the form that accumulates in fish). The highest levels are found in swordfish, shark, king mackerel, and Gulf of Mexico tilefish. But 37 percent of Americans’ dietary mercury exposure actually comes from canned tuna, which ranks second only to shrimp as the most popular seafood in the country.

The trouble is, the mercury level in canned light tuna can vary wildly. Our analysis found that 20 percent of samples in an FDA study contained almost double the average. And these safety limits are for total exposure, not even accounting for contact with other sources of mercury.” – Consumer Reports

There are various sources of exposure to mercury in our daily life. The largest two would be from mercury fillings and diet. We’ve posted before that the levels of mercury in tuna are on the rise – but recent research has shown that even the “safer” alternative of white tuna (albacore) still has very high levels of mercury.


http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/news/2014/09/who-is-minding-the-mercury-in-your-childs-tuna-sandwich/index.htm