Study Suggests Pregnant Women Should Stay Away From Tuna

Study Suggests Pregnant Women Should Stay Away From Tuna

Pregnant women should avoid any form of tuna, be it fresh or canned says a new study published by Consumer Reports. While the United States Food and Drug Administration or FDA says that canned tuna is safe for pregnant women due to low levels of mercury, the recent data published by Consumer Reports said that even low levels of mercury can cause severe brain and nervous system damage to a fetus.

Consumer Reports also published a list of alternative fish products that can replace tuna, providing pregnant women with essential vitamins and oils without the risk of mercury poisoning. These fish include salmon, shrimp or tilapia.

The FDA recently published some nutrition guidelines for women who are pregnant, are planning to get pregnant or are currently nursing. These guidelines allow women to consume up to 12 ounces of low-mercury seafood per week, including canned tuna.

Consumer Reports disagrees with the FDA guidelines saying that of the list, canned tuna is the most troublesome as it is the most popular seafood consumed in the United States next to shrimp. Jean Halloran, director of food policy initiatives at CR said that while there are some tuna species that are indeed low in mercury, canned tuna tends to mix species of tuna and their harvesting place, creating a potential high mercury food that is hard to measure or regulate.

He added that for extra safety, pregnant women, women who are planning on having a baby or women who are nursing should just avoid tuna products altogether.

Posted by George Daniels on Monday August 25 2014, 3:08 AM EDT. Ref: chinatopix. Link. All trademarks acknowledged. Filed under Featured News, Health. Comments and Trackbacks closed. Follow responses: RSS 2.0