Click to enlarge Fish is generally healthy to eat. But because of the comtaminants found in the oceans, lakes and rivers, eating fish that are contaminated with toxins and chemicals can pose considerable health risks. As we know HALAL has to be healthy so we should be extra careful when it comes to consuming seafood because of the contaminations.
Contaminants may include:
metals such as mercury and lead,
industrial chemicals such as PCBs, and
pesticides such as DDT and dieldrin.
industrial chemicals such as PCBs, and
pesticides such as DDT and dieldrin.
What are the risks of eating seafood contaminated with mercury and PCBs?
Contaminants such as mercury, PCBs and dioxins build up in your body over time and may result in health problems, ranging from small, hard-to-detect changes to birth defects and cancer.
Contaminants such as mercury, PCBs and dioxins build up in your body over time and may result in health problems, ranging from small, hard-to-detect changes to birth defects and cancer.
Key facts about the risks include:
It can take 5 years or more for women in their childbearing years to rid their bodies of PCBs, and 12-18 months to significantly reduce their mercury levels.
Mothers who eat contaminated fish before becoming pregnant may have children who are slower to develop and learn. Developing fetuses are exposed to stored toxins through the placenta.
Women beyond their childbearing years and men face fewer health risks from contaminants than children do.
It can take 5 years or more for women in their childbearing years to rid their bodies of PCBs, and 12-18 months to significantly reduce their mercury levels.
Mothers who eat contaminated fish before becoming pregnant may have children who are slower to develop and learn. Developing fetuses are exposed to stored toxins through the placenta.
Women beyond their childbearing years and men face fewer health risks from contaminants than children do.
What about mercury in canned tuna?
The two most popular types of canned tuna – white and light – vary greatly in their average mercury content. Overall, it’s best to exercise caution in how much tuna you (or especially your children) consume.
Canned white tuna consists of albacore, a large species of tuna that accumulates moderate amounts of mercury. Therefore, Environmental Defense recommends that both adults and children limit their consumption of canned white tuna.
Canned light tuna usually consists of skipjack, a smaller species with approximately one-third the mercury levels of albacore. Therefore, Environmental Defense recommends only that young children (ages 0-6) limit their consumption of canned light tuna.
A word of caution: Some canned light tuna reportedly contains yellowfin tuna, which has similar mercury levels to albacore. These products are sometimes (but not always) labeled ‘gourmet’ or ‘tonno’, and their consumption should be limited by adults and children.
The two most popular types of canned tuna – white and light – vary greatly in their average mercury content. Overall, it’s best to exercise caution in how much tuna you (or especially your children) consume.
Canned white tuna consists of albacore, a large species of tuna that accumulates moderate amounts of mercury. Therefore, Environmental Defense recommends that both adults and children limit their consumption of canned white tuna.
Canned light tuna usually consists of skipjack, a smaller species with approximately one-third the mercury levels of albacore. Therefore, Environmental Defense recommends only that young children (ages 0-6) limit their consumption of canned light tuna.
A word of caution: Some canned light tuna reportedly contains yellowfin tuna, which has similar mercury levels to albacore. These products are sometimes (but not always) labeled ‘gourmet’ or ‘tonno’, and their consumption should be limited by adults and children.
Do the health benefits of omega-3s outweigh the risks associated with contaminants in seafood?
Fish is generally healthy to eat, but there are some types you should eat infrequently, if at all. Consider the following:
For young children and women of childbearing age, consumption of mercury-contaminated fish can severely impact a child's development.
Older women and men may find it an acceptable tradeoff to exceed recommended seafood meal limits to increase their omega-3 intake.
People at high risk of cardiovascular disease must weigh the cancer risk of eating fish high in PCBs with the benefits of eating fish high in omega-3s, in which case the benefits of omega-3s may outweigh the cancer risk (1 in 100,000 - the level recommended by the EPA). However, these chemicals are known to cause serious health problems besides cancer, so the tradeoffs are not simple.
The good news is that there are several low-contaminant, high-omega-3 seafood options available (see the list above) so there’s no need to risk eating contaminated fish.
Fish is generally healthy to eat, but there are some types you should eat infrequently, if at all. Consider the following:
For young children and women of childbearing age, consumption of mercury-contaminated fish can severely impact a child's development.
Older women and men may find it an acceptable tradeoff to exceed recommended seafood meal limits to increase their omega-3 intake.
People at high risk of cardiovascular disease must weigh the cancer risk of eating fish high in PCBs with the benefits of eating fish high in omega-3s, in which case the benefits of omega-3s may outweigh the cancer risk (1 in 100,000 - the level recommended by the EPA). However, these chemicals are known to cause serious health problems besides cancer, so the tradeoffs are not simple.
The good news is that there are several low-contaminant, high-omega-3 seafood options available (see the list above) so there’s no need to risk eating contaminated fish.
Where do contaminants come from?
Contaminants end up in water in a variety of ways:
Industrial and municipal discharges, agricultural practices, and storm water runoff can all deposit harmful substances directly into the water.
Rain can also wash chemicals from the land or air into streams and rivers. These contaminants are then carried downstream into lakes, reservoirs and estuaries.
Fish take in these substances in several ways, and their contaminant levels depend on factors like species, size, age and location.
Mercury, for example, is naturally converted by bacteria into methylmercury. Fish absorb methylmercury mostly from their food, but also from the water as it passes over their gills. Generally, larger and older fish have had more time to bioaccumulate mercury from their food and the water than smaller and younger fish. In addition, large predatory fish (like sharks and swordfish) near the top of marine food chains are more likely to have high levels of mercury than fish lower in marine food chains due to the process of biomagnification.
Fish can also absorb organic chemicals (such as PCBs, dioxins and DDT) from the water, suspended sediments, and their food. In contaminated areas, bottom-dwelling fish are especially likely to have high levels of such toxins because these substances run off the land and settle to the bottom. These organic chemicals then concentrate in the skin, organs and other fatty tissues of fish. Wild striped bass, bluefish, American eel, and seatrout tend to be high in PCBs, since they are bottom-tending fish often found in contaminated rivers and estuaries.
Contaminants end up in water in a variety of ways:
Industrial and municipal discharges, agricultural practices, and storm water runoff can all deposit harmful substances directly into the water.
Rain can also wash chemicals from the land or air into streams and rivers. These contaminants are then carried downstream into lakes, reservoirs and estuaries.
Fish take in these substances in several ways, and their contaminant levels depend on factors like species, size, age and location.
Mercury, for example, is naturally converted by bacteria into methylmercury. Fish absorb methylmercury mostly from their food, but also from the water as it passes over their gills. Generally, larger and older fish have had more time to bioaccumulate mercury from their food and the water than smaller and younger fish. In addition, large predatory fish (like sharks and swordfish) near the top of marine food chains are more likely to have high levels of mercury than fish lower in marine food chains due to the process of biomagnification.
Fish can also absorb organic chemicals (such as PCBs, dioxins and DDT) from the water, suspended sediments, and their food. In contaminated areas, bottom-dwelling fish are especially likely to have high levels of such toxins because these substances run off the land and settle to the bottom. These organic chemicals then concentrate in the skin, organs and other fatty tissues of fish. Wild striped bass, bluefish, American eel, and seatrout tend to be high in PCBs, since they are bottom-tending fish often found in contaminated rivers and estuaries.
These are the reasons why we should eat some kinds of fish less frequently if at all. The chart above has the lists for best, OK and worst choices of fish to eat.
Also below is a chart that shows how many servings of certain kinds of fish are safe to eat per month.
Click to enlargeAll information from http://www.edf.org/page.cfm?tagID=1521
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