February 11, 2014 — A U.S. advocacy group recently released a report accusing the government of not doing a good enough job at easing consumer confusion about eating seafood. While they have a point, the bigger issue is that the government needs to do a better job of promoting overall seafood consumption.
The Environmental Working Group report stated you can’t tell people to double or triple their consumption without clear information about what to eat. The group warns that people who follow the federal government’s advice could consume too much methylmercury or too few omega-3 fatty acids.
EWG’s approach seems like an all-too-familiar scare tactic that will actually result in people eating less seafood, not more.
Time and time again the seafood industry has said the methylmercury risk from seafood consumption is not a health concern — except for pregnant women and nursing mothers, and those guidelines are generally well-known.
An Environmental Protection Agency peer-reviewed study in November of last year showed that methylmercury levels in women have dropped significantly. The study found the percentage of women of childbearing age with blood mercury above “the level of concern” plummeted 65 percent from 2001 to 2010.
A study done by the University of Bristol in September 2013 showed that women should consider eating more fish during pregnancy as fears over methylmercury levels may be unfounded. The research suggests fish accounts for just 7 percent of methylmercury levels in the human body, with all food and drink totaling less than 17 percent.
Read the full story at SeafoodSource.com