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CNN Live Today
Benefits Outweigh Risk of Fish
Aired December 10, 2002 - 11:40 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
LEON HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: Will eating fish help you live longer, or will it make you sick because of high mercury levels?
Our medical news correspondent, Elizabeth Cohen, is checking in here with some answers for you in our daily dose of health news today -- what is the word?
ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, it is hard to know what to do when you want to eat fish, because there is all this conflicting information, so we are here to figure it all out.
Fish, in many ways are terrific for you. Fish is high in protein, it has omega-3 fatty acids, which is good for your cholesterol and good for your heart, but because of protein -- because of pollution, rather, some fish have high mercury levels. So what are you supposed to do?
Well, the American Heart Association recently came out with a report. Basically, they say the benefits of fish outweigh the risks. They say eat fish at least two times a week, and if you have heart disease, consider taking a fish oil supplement, that that might be the trick if you don't actually want to eat fish. But in addition, the AHA also warns that pregnant and nursing women and children should not eat four types of fish because these have been found to be particularly high in mercury.
That would be swordfish, shark, king mackerel, and tile fish. So the bottom line here is that if you're not pregnant, if you are not nursing, and if you are not a child, go ahead, eat fish, and don't worry about it. However, if you fall into those groups, you should avoid those four types of fish, and in general, don't eat more than three to four servings of fish in general because of the mercury problem if you're pregnant or a child.
HARRIS: Tile fish, never heard of it before. Where do you find that, in the bathroom?
COHEN: That was funny.
HARRIS: Now, do you have to eat the fish or can you take a supplement instead? Is that just as good, or does your body not accept it the same way or what?
COHEN: These supplements are looking pretty good. There was actually a study done that looked at people who eat fish versus people who take supplements, and they found that when people take supplements, they get some of those cholesterol-lowering benefits, just as if they had eaten fish. So it is looking -- it is looking pretty good. That's not entirely known, but the supplements are looking pretty good.
HARRIS: OK. Good deal. All right, thanks Elizabeth.
COHEN: OK. Thanks.
HARRIS: Appreciate it. Elizabeth Cohen, medical news correspondent.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
Aired December 10, 2002 - 11:40 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
LEON HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: Will eating fish help you live longer, or will it make you sick because of high mercury levels?
Our medical news correspondent, Elizabeth Cohen, is checking in here with some answers for you in our daily dose of health news today -- what is the word?
ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, it is hard to know what to do when you want to eat fish, because there is all this conflicting information, so we are here to figure it all out.
Fish, in many ways are terrific for you. Fish is high in protein, it has omega-3 fatty acids, which is good for your cholesterol and good for your heart, but because of protein -- because of pollution, rather, some fish have high mercury levels. So what are you supposed to do?
Well, the American Heart Association recently came out with a report. Basically, they say the benefits of fish outweigh the risks. They say eat fish at least two times a week, and if you have heart disease, consider taking a fish oil supplement, that that might be the trick if you don't actually want to eat fish. But in addition, the AHA also warns that pregnant and nursing women and children should not eat four types of fish because these have been found to be particularly high in mercury.
That would be swordfish, shark, king mackerel, and tile fish. So the bottom line here is that if you're not pregnant, if you are not nursing, and if you are not a child, go ahead, eat fish, and don't worry about it. However, if you fall into those groups, you should avoid those four types of fish, and in general, don't eat more than three to four servings of fish in general because of the mercury problem if you're pregnant or a child.
HARRIS: Tile fish, never heard of it before. Where do you find that, in the bathroom?
COHEN: That was funny.
HARRIS: Now, do you have to eat the fish or can you take a supplement instead? Is that just as good, or does your body not accept it the same way or what?
COHEN: These supplements are looking pretty good. There was actually a study done that looked at people who eat fish versus people who take supplements, and they found that when people take supplements, they get some of those cholesterol-lowering benefits, just as if they had eaten fish. So it is looking -- it is looking pretty good. That's not entirely known, but the supplements are looking pretty good.
HARRIS: OK. Good deal. All right, thanks Elizabeth.
COHEN: OK. Thanks.
HARRIS: Appreciate it. Elizabeth Cohen, medical news correspondent.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
