GO Fish

[Iluvharleys 15]

Not all seafood is tainted with mercury or PCB's. Here's what to reel in, what to throw back.

ENJOY Uup to two servings a week)

Clams

Oysters

Shrimp

Tilapia

Crawfish

Haddock

Trout (freshwater)

Catfish

Flatfish (including flounder and sole)

Mackerel (Atlantic)

Scallops

Crab (blue, king, and snow)

Pollack

Shad (American)

Squid

tuna (canned chunk light)

Lobster (spiny)

Mackerel chub (Pacific)

Cod*

Perch (freshwater)

Skate

Halibut

Spanish mackerel (South Atlantic)

Monkfish*

Snapper*

Weakfish (sea trout)

Bass (saltwater; including sea and striped)

SHOW RESTRAINT (One serving a week)

Lobster (northern/American)

Tuna (canned white albacore, fresh/frozen)

Spanish mackerel (Gulf of Mexico)

Marlin

Ornage roughy*

Grouper* (one to two servings a month)

Salmon (especially farmed) +

Sardines+

Herring+

Bluefish+

AVOID

King mackerel (Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico)

Shark*

Swordfish*

Tilefish (Gulf of Mexico)*

__________________________________________________

*Overfished +Contains PCBs or other pollutants

Symptoms of mercury poisoning: Mucle aches, blurred vision, depression, inability to concentrate, memory loss, skin rashes.

If you suspect poisioning have your doctor for a heavy-metal test of your blood, urine, or hair.< /p>

[donali 57]

http://www.organicconsumers.org/Toxic/safe-fish.cfm

To be safest, however, The Green Guide and the Environmental Working Group recommend limiting moderate-mercury fish to one meal a month, and bypassing high-mercury fish completely. In addition, our list of high-mercury fish is longer than the FDA's, which includes only king mackerel, shark, swordfish, and tilefish (see fish lists below).

POPs

Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) -- neurotoxic, hormone-disrupting chemicals banned in the U.S. since 1977 -- were found at levels seven times higher in farmed salmon than in wild ones, according to a study published in Science in January 2004. PCBs are persistent organic pollutants (POPs), which accumulate in animal fats. Because most farmed salmon are raised on feed that includes ground-up fish -- and sometimes other animals, such as cattle

-- their bodies collect POPs. PCBs are also found at high levels in fish from polluted Water bodies, varying from locale to locale; state health advisories list which fish should not be consumed by children, pregnant or nursing women, and women of childbearing age. Other POPs found in fish include the organochlorine pesticide dieldrin and dioxins, which result from chlorine paper bleaching and manufacturing and incineration of PVC plastic.

Fish to Avoid

High mercury: Atlantic halibut, king mackerel, oysters (Gulf Coast), pike, sea bass, shark, swordfish, tilefish (golden snapper), tuna (steaks and canned albacore).

High POPs: Farmed salmon. Limit to once a month if pregnant/nursing. Check TheGreenGuide.com for updates on POPs in other farmed fish.

Fish to Eat

The gift of crab.

Moderate mercury: Alaskan halibut, black cod, blue (Gulf Coast) crab, cod, dungeness crab, Eastern oysters, mahimahi, blue mussels, pollack, tuna (canned light). (Children and pregnant or nursing women are advised to eat no more than one from this list, once a month.)

Low mercury: Anchovies, Arctic char, crawfish, Pacific flounder, herring, king crab, sanddabs, scallops, Pacific sole; tilapia, wild Alaska and Pacific salmon; farmed catfish, clams, striped bass, and sturgeon. (Children and pregnant or nursing women can safely eat two to three times a week.)

Take note, though, that low-mercury but overfished or destructively harvested species -- such as Atlantic cod, Atlantic flounder, Atlantic sole, Chilean sea bass, monkfish, orange roughy, shrimp, and snapper -- should be avoided for the environment's sake.

Low POPs: Wild Alaska and California salmon (fresh or canned).

Check with your state's department of health for POP advisories before eating fish from local waters.

The Final Word

Limit fish consumption by category, not individual species. For example, both cod and mahimahi are moderate-mercury fish, and only one from this category should be eaten per month -- not one meal of cod and one of mahimahi.

If you're in a high-risk group, don't eat the skin and fatty parts of fish, where POPs collect. Eat grilled, baked, and broiled rather than fried fish, to avoid fat.

[Zoe 6]

I would like to point out that chocolate (both milk and dark) contains no mercury or PCBs. OK, I'm going back to the fishing hole.

[leatha_g 4]

Hmm... I've been taking the lunch to Go Chunk Light tuna to work EVERYDAY.. am I correct in thinking this says THAT is okay or no?? So much information.... this tuna, that tuna.. oy!

[donali 57]

Well... According to the more drastic warning from organicconsumers, chunk light tuna is considered a "moderate" mercury fish, and consumption of moderate mercury fish should be restricted to one portion per month.

But even Betty's list claims that fish chosen from their "Enjoy" list should be limited to two servings a week - that's not two servings a week for each item, that's two servings per week TOTAL from items on that list.

Of course, we're all going to die from something, anyway... lol If I were trying to become or was pregnant I think I would be more wary of my fish consumption. I don't eat a lot of fish anyway, but even if I did I probably wouldn't think about the dangers unless the people around me were dropping like flies... lol Too many other things to worry about.

[leatha_g 4]

Darn.... thanks for explaining that. Here I thought I was doing a GOOD thing for my weight, but no wonder I can't remember my own name!! lol. Guess it'll be chicken for lunch today...

[HarleyNana 10]

OMG, I've only had tuna about 6 times this week, no wonder I can't focus, focus, focus.

[leatha_g 4]

This is actually quite laughable. or maybe my brain is totalled from my mercury intake! On top of having lunch to Go Chunk Light tuna everyday while I'm at home and working in the office; I have crabcakes sometimes 2-4 times a week on the road while I'm away from home! (They're usually on the appetizer list and I've become quite conossieur of crabcakes across the country since I travel and they're easy to eat with the band.) Not to mention the excellent Mahi Mahi, crabcakes and baked scrod the Schwans man brings me at home! What's really funny about this is that used to, a tuna sandwich once in awhile was my normal intake of ANY kind of fish! Have I changed my eating habits OR WHAT??