It is a known fact that almost all fish and shellfish contain traces of mercury. Though mercury does not pose any risk in normal cases, exposure to high levels can be harmful for an unborn baby or small children. Hence, it is important to maintain a safe level of the chemical element in the body.
However, a new study found variations in the mercury levels in Tuna, one of the favorite sea foods of children and suggests parents and school authorities to fully avoid albacore and serve light tuna to children only twice a month. According to the new guideline, small children with less than 55 pounds weight should be served light tuna only once a month.
"Most children are already consuming only modest amounts of tuna and are not at significant risk," said Michael Bender, Mercury Policy Project's (MPP) director, in a statement. "So the focus really needs to be on kids who eat tuna often, to limit their mercury exposure by offering them lower-mercury seafood or other nutritious alternatives."
The new guidelines from the MPP are based on the experiments conducted by Ned Groth , an environmental health scientist. For analyzing the risks associated with eating tuna frequently, Groth created different situations with different children eating different types of tuna fish and found high risks associated with consuming tuna frequently.
"Kids who eat tuna frequently can easily get very high mercury doses," Groth, said in a news release. "Some of the larger doses are clearly far too high to be acceptable."
MPP also measured mercury levels in 59 samples of eight brands of tuna distributed in 11 schools across the country.
The report "Tuna Surprise: Mercury in School Lunches" found white tuna or albacore containing triple mercury level compared to light tuna. According to the researchers, children should not consume albacore. The study also found children who ate tuna every day being rushed to hospital and treated for methylmercury poisoning.
The findings bring concern as majority of American children love the healthy fish that is rich in vitamins, minerals and also omega-3 fatty acids.
"Fish, including tuna, is generally a nutritious part of a healthy diet," said Sarah Klein, staff attorney in the Food Safety program at Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI). "But especially for our littlest, most vulnerable children, we have to make sure the risks from mercury in tuna don't outweigh tuna's benefits. We're urging parents and schools to limit children's tuna consumption and, when they do serve it, to choose lower-mercury options."
Though mercury is naturally present in the environment, industries play a major role in increasing its level in the air. Mercury in the air is later gathered in oceans and streams. It is later transformed into methylmercury in water and is thus absorbed by fish.
"It's a shame that such a great source of inexpensive protein is contaminated with mercury," said Dr. Thomasson, Executive Director of Physicians for Social Responsibility. "To reduce risk, we need to both reduce children's exposure to tuna and reduce mercury pollution the majority of which is from coal-burning power plants."
