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Is Tuna Safe for Pregnant Women?
Aired December 11, 2003 - 13:20 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.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: Well just when you thought it was safe to pull something out of the water, new concerns about a favorite fish. Should you be changing your tune about tuna? CNN medical correspondent Christy Feig is in Washington with what's become, I guess you could say, a "searing" debate. Hi, Christy,
CHRISTY FEIG, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Kyra.
Well, Kyra, it's your largest fish that tend to pose the biggest problem here. That's because they tend to be a little bit older and have absorbed more mercury over the years. They also sometimes eat your smaller fish. In that case, they get the mercury that's in the smaller fish as well.
Not this isn't the mercury in your thermometer we're talking about. It's a compound called methylmurcury, it exists naturally in nature. It is put off by some industrial pollution sometimes, falls down into the water, the fish absorb it there as they're feeding.
The problem here is everybody's asking about tuna because people eat more tuna than any other fish. Tuna is not what the FDA is calling a high-mercury fish. It is not in the category of fish that they're telling you to avoid.
They're telling you to limit the amount of tuna you eat. They put it on the list of fish that you can eat two or three times a week. But the FDA does not want you to pick from that list more than -- the same fish more than one time a week.
So the bottom line for you tuna lovers, don't eat tuna more than one time a week if you're concerned about high levels of mercury.
Now this advisory is specifically directed toward women of child bearing years, toward women who are pregnant, women who are breastfeeding at the time. And also young children. That's because high levels of mercury can cause delays in a developing nervous system.
If you fall into these categories, the FDA says here's the bottom line next time you go to the grocery store. You're going to want to avoid shark, swordfish, tile fish, and king mackerel.
There are fish that are lower in mercury. On this list that includes catfish, salmon, tuna, halibut, and most shell fish like crab.
Now, again, the FDA says if you're picking from this list that does have mercury -- because most fish do -- but they're lower in mercury, you don't want to pick the same fish more than one time a week. That means you can have halibut for dinner one night, you can have salmon for dinner one night, you can have a tuna sandwich for lunch. But don't have tuna three times a week -- Kyra.
PHILLIPS: All right, Christy, quickly. I remember when my friend -- she found out she was pregnant and she was being consulted by a dietitian. That dietitian told her if there's any mercury at all in the fish, don't go there. If you are pregnant, don't even go there. Is that changing now or...
FEIG: That's not changing, Kyra, at all. There are very few fish that have no mercury and it is a problem. Most fish, just being a fish in the waters, they're going to absorb some. That's why if you're pregnant, steer clear of most fish, eat it very rarely.
And if you can, stick to that list that has lower mercury in it. And only have fish one or two times a week.
PHILLIPS: All right, Christy Feig, thank you.
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 11, 2003 - 13:20 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: Well just when you thought it was safe to pull something out of the water, new concerns about a favorite fish. Should you be changing your tune about tuna? CNN medical correspondent Christy Feig is in Washington with what's become, I guess you could say, a "searing" debate. Hi, Christy,
CHRISTY FEIG, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Kyra.
Well, Kyra, it's your largest fish that tend to pose the biggest problem here. That's because they tend to be a little bit older and have absorbed more mercury over the years. They also sometimes eat your smaller fish. In that case, they get the mercury that's in the smaller fish as well.
Not this isn't the mercury in your thermometer we're talking about. It's a compound called methylmurcury, it exists naturally in nature. It is put off by some industrial pollution sometimes, falls down into the water, the fish absorb it there as they're feeding.
The problem here is everybody's asking about tuna because people eat more tuna than any other fish. Tuna is not what the FDA is calling a high-mercury fish. It is not in the category of fish that they're telling you to avoid.
They're telling you to limit the amount of tuna you eat. They put it on the list of fish that you can eat two or three times a week. But the FDA does not want you to pick from that list more than -- the same fish more than one time a week.
So the bottom line for you tuna lovers, don't eat tuna more than one time a week if you're concerned about high levels of mercury.
Now this advisory is specifically directed toward women of child bearing years, toward women who are pregnant, women who are breastfeeding at the time. And also young children. That's because high levels of mercury can cause delays in a developing nervous system.
If you fall into these categories, the FDA says here's the bottom line next time you go to the grocery store. You're going to want to avoid shark, swordfish, tile fish, and king mackerel.
There are fish that are lower in mercury. On this list that includes catfish, salmon, tuna, halibut, and most shell fish like crab.
Now, again, the FDA says if you're picking from this list that does have mercury -- because most fish do -- but they're lower in mercury, you don't want to pick the same fish more than one time a week. That means you can have halibut for dinner one night, you can have salmon for dinner one night, you can have a tuna sandwich for lunch. But don't have tuna three times a week -- Kyra.
PHILLIPS: All right, Christy, quickly. I remember when my friend -- she found out she was pregnant and she was being consulted by a dietitian. That dietitian told her if there's any mercury at all in the fish, don't go there. If you are pregnant, don't even go there. Is that changing now or...
FEIG: That's not changing, Kyra, at all. There are very few fish that have no mercury and it is a problem. Most fish, just being a fish in the waters, they're going to absorb some. That's why if you're pregnant, steer clear of most fish, eat it very rarely.
And if you can, stick to that list that has lower mercury in it. And only have fish one or two times a week.
PHILLIPS: All right, Christy Feig, thank you.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
