Saving Seafood

Safety net: What’s missing in mental health for fishermen

August 9th, 2019 — Depression, anxiety, and thoughts of suicide are not uncommon in any fishing community no matter which coast you are on. It is an isolating, dangerous occupation full of uncertainty and expenses; it costs time, money, and many sacrifices to be a fisherman.

There are numerous mental health resources that exist for farmers and ranchers. A quick Google search of “mental health resources for farmers” offers about 128 million results. Surely, not all these results are relevant, but the first dozen is specific to resources for farmers and include articles about how current stresses in the environment and policy are affecting the mental health of farmers.

A search for “mental health resources for fishermen” does not yield the same results. This search only elicits about 7.5 million results and the first dozen barely apply to commercial harvesters. In fact, one of the articles listed is “Why taking a fishing trip is good for your mental health.” I’m guessing that’s not for the guys heading out to sea for a couple of months to deal with all kinds of weather and uncertainties and risk their lives to bring home some seafood.

Read the full story at National Fisherman

Do Fish Suffer From Depression Too? Experts Say Yes

October 19, 2017 — NEW YORK — Have you ever seen a sad-looking fish? According to researchers, fish depression is a very really thing and the condition is being used to find a treatment for humans suffering from the disorder.

“The neurochemistry is so similar that it’s scary,” Troy University’s Julian Pittman told the New York Times. The Biological and Environmental Science professor is working with other scientists to test new depression treatments; with tiny zebrafish leading the way. Dr. Pittman added that fish are the perfect choice to experiment with because their symptoms of depression are much more obvious than humans.

Read and watch the full story at CBS New York

Could Eating Fish Help Ward Off Depression?

September 10, 2015 — Can eating a lot of fish boost your mood? Maybe, say Chinese researchers.

Overall, the researchers found that people who consumed the most fish lowered their risk of depression by 17 percent compared to those who ate the least.

“Studies we reviewed indicated that high fish consumption can reduce the incidence of depression, which may indicate a potential causal relationship between fish consumption and depression,” said lead researcher Fang Li, of the department of epidemiology and health statistics at the Medical College of Qingdao University in China.

But this association was only statistically significant for studies done in Europe, the researchers said. They didn’t find the same benefit when they looked at studies done in North America, Asia, Australia or South America. The researchers don’t know why the association was only significant for fish consumption in Europe.

The study was also only able to show an association between eating fish and the risk for depression, not that eating fish causes a lower risk for depression, Li said.

Read the full story from U.S. News & World Report