Healthy fish consumption and reduced mercury exposure: Counseling women in their reproductive years

Article Figures & Data

Table 1.

Main studies exploring health effects of low-dose prenatal mercury exposure

STUDY LOCATION	DETAILS	ASSOCIATIONS WITH PRENATAL MERCURY EXPOSURE
Faroe Islands18,19	More than 900 mother-child pairs; diet included PCB exposure (whale meat), but analyses controlled for PCBs	Memory, language, and attention deficits at age 7; fine motor, attention, visual-spatial, and verbal skill deficits at age 14
New Zealand20	237 mother-infant pairs; varying fish consumption patterns during pregnancy (low to high)	Reduced performance in scholastic and psychological tests during early school years
Seychelles Islands21,22	779 mother-infant pairs; approximately 12 fish meals a week on average during pregnancy	Pilot study showed lower Denver Developmental Screening Test scores; main study showed no delays in developmental milestones or deficits in neurodevelopmental tests

Table 2.

Tuna as a source of mercury

FOOD SOURCE	SPECIES	MERCURY CONTENT
Fresh or frozen tuna, including sushi tuna and tuna steaks	Larger species	Higher
Canned white tuna	Albacore species	Intermediate
Canned light tuna	Smaller species such as skipjack, yellowfin, and tongol	Lower