Newsletter Home     Industry Bite     Harvest Update     Featured Articles     Featured Recipe     Order Materials FDA Recommends Amendment to Seafood Mercury Advisory The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) drafted a report for the White House recommending a landmark revision to the federal government's seafood consumption advisory. The current advisory states that women of childbearing age, pregnant women, nursing mothers, infants and children should avoid eating swordfish, king mackerel, tilefish and shark and limit consumption of canned albacore tuna because of the presence of methylmercury. This new report suggests changing the advisory to encourage more seafood consumption because science has found the health benefits of eating seafood outweigh any risks. The report argues that nutrients in fish, such as omega-3 fatty acids, selenium and other minerals, could help boost a child's IQ up to three points, with the greatest benefits coming from eating more than 12 ounces of fish per week. Additionally, the report recommends that most people should eat more fish, even if it contains mercury. The USDA updates the food consumption advisories such as this one every five years, based on the current science. For more information on this issue, the Alaska Seafood Marketing Institute recently released a new paper titled "Seafood: Weighing the Benefits and Risks." Written by Dr. Joyce Nettleton, the paper details why seafood is critical for the healthy development of infants and children and essential for continued lifelong health. It provides an in-depth explanation of methylmercury and contaminants, lists who may be at a higher risk, and offers recommendations on how to choose fish wisely in order to gain the most benefit from seafood nutrition. Additionally, the paper points out that selenium, a potent antioxidant contained in fish, is shown to negate the potentially toxic effects of methylmercury. Seafood, in fact, is the richest source of selenium in the diet. The paper goes on to note that amounts of selenium in fish almost always exceed the level of mercury. To order "Seafood: Weighing the Benefits and Risks" by Dr. Joyce Nettleton, visit www.alaskaseafood.org or call (800) 806-2497. Source: SeafoodSource News, December 12, 2008