Pregnant Women, Kids Now Urged to Eat Mercury-Laced Seafood

If approved by the White House, the FDA's position would reverse the government's current policy that certain groups -- women of childbearing years, pregnant women, nursing mothers, infants and children -- can be harmed by the mercury in fish and should limit their consumption.

The FDA's recommendations have alarmed scientists at the Environmental Protection Agency, who in internal memos criticized them as "scientifically flawed and inadequate" and said they fell short of the "scientific rigor routinely demonstrated by EPA."

The FDA sent its draft report, a copy of which was obtained by The Washington Post, to the White House Office of Management and Budget as part of the FDA's effort to update the existing health advisory. The report argued that nutrients in fish, including omega-3 fatty acids, selenium and other minerals could boost a child's IQ by three points.

In 2004, the two agencies issued their first joint advisory, suggesting that women of childbearing age, pregnant women, nursing mothers, infants and children stop eating four species of fish considered especially high in mercury: swordfish, shark, tilefish and king mackerel. At the same time, the government advised limiting consumption of other mercury-contaminated fish.

The new advisory comes from the National Healthy Mothers, Healthy Babies Coalition, a nonprofit group with nearly 150 members, including the American Academy of Pediatrics, the March of Dimes, the National Institute on Child Health and Human Development and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Concerns over the impact of fish on the brain development of fetuses and infants, the most vulnerable groups, have been one of the more vexing nutritional dilemmas of recent years, causing widespread consumer confusion and fueling much scientific debate.

Most fish contain some of the long chain omega-3 fatty acids, eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA). Recent evidence has suggested that fish consumption and the associated intake of EPA and DHA from fish can help maintain healthy heart function. Consumption of fish has also been associated with reduced risk of sudden cardiac death in healthy people and there is evidence that regular consumption of fish by pregnant women and women who may become pregnant plays a role in normal fetal brain and eye development.

Some types of fish have higher levels of these beneficial fatty acids than others. Fish and shellfish that contain higher levels of these fatty acids and are also low in mercury include: anchovy, capelin, char, hake, herring, Atlantic mackerel, mullet, pollock ( Boston bluefish), salmon, smelt, rainbow trout, lake whitefish, blue crab, shrimp, clam, mussel and oyster.

All fish are also a significant source of vitamin D and contribute valuable mineral nutrients to the diet such as selenium, iodine, magnesium, iron and copper.

Types of fish that should be eaten less often

Health Canada has identified certain fish as being of more concern when it comes to mercury in fish. Fish can accumulate mercury in their muscles through absorption from the surrounding water but mostly from the prey that they eat. This mercury can also concentrate up the food chain. Therefore, predatory fish that eat lots of other fish for food tend to contain higher levels of mercury.

These include fresh/frozen tuna, shark, swordfish, marlin, orange roughy and escolar.