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Something fishy about the fish....oh, wait, it's mercury
It was all over the news few weeks ago. On December 12, Environmental Working Group published a report called Mercury Mischief at FDA, disclosing internal documents from the federal Food and Drug Administration and Environmental Protection Agency that showed a secret FDA effort to promote unlimited fish consumption and drop government warnings that some popular fish - tuna, swordfish and mackerel - are high in mercury, a neurotoxin particularly hazardous to the developing fetus and infants.
As the documents showed, EPA officials were resisting on grounds that FDA had presented no scientifically valid justification for dispensing with the March 2004 federal health advisory on mercury in fish that cautioned women and young children not to eat more than 12 ounces of seafood a week and no more of 6 ounces of albacore tuna.
Since EWG published the documents, FDA officials have apparently backed away from their plan, for the moment anyway.
But there's more to do. By now, most people know that mercury is toxic for young. But many are not aware of the effects of mercury on adults. One of the first scientists to focus on this problem has been San Francisco physician Jane M. Hightower, who specializes in internal medicine. Puzzled that 123 of her patients were complaining of similar mysterious symptoms - fatigue, nausea, joint pain, insomnia, memory lapses and inability to focus, Hightower found that most were heavy fish-eaters and fully 89 percent exceeded the mercury safety level set by EPA. In fact, some exceeded the EPA protective level by a factor of 30.
Hightower reported her striking findings on fish and mercury in a groundbreaking study published in the April 2003 issue of Environmental Health Perspectives. Her work became a pivotal factor in helping EWG and other health advocates prevail over the seafood industry in the fight for the March 2004 seafood consumption warning. Hightower expanded on her medical detective work in a book, Diagnosis: Mercury -- Money, Politics & Poison, published in September 2008 by Island Press, Washington, D.C.
This week, in letters to Senate environment committee chair Barbara Boxer, D-CA., and House energy and commerce committee chair Henry Waxman, D-CA., whose panels oversee FDA, Hightower pressed for even stronger warnings to consumers. "The FDA and fishing industry have not adequately informed the consumer as to what fish are high, medium, or low in mercury at the point of sale," Hightower wrote. "This has exposed the consumer to a roulette game of mercury doses and leaves the high-end consumer at risk for excess mercury and adverse health effects."
Hightower asked the Congressional leaders to investigate the relationship between FDA and the fishing industry and determine why the agency had seemed so ready to abandon its fish/mercury stance.
We second Hightower's call for a thorough scrub of FDA. As we point out in our own research on fish and mercury, it's true that seafood is rich in vital nutrients: protein, iron, omega-3 fatty acids, which reduce "bad" cholesterol and the trace mineral selenium, which helps prevent cellular damage. But obtaining an adequate supply of these nutrients need not mean compromising on mercury. We advise consumers to find these healthful nutrients in worry-free foods such as walnuts, fortified eggs, margarine and low-mercury seafood such as shrimp and wild salmon. The government should work with independent scientists, such as Hightower, not with fish industry lobbyists, to guide consumers to the safest fish.
nice!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Hello! I am the artist/reporter/analyst who runs a blog called 'Culture of Life News' at http://emsnews.wordpress.com/
I notice you used my artwork with NO LINK and NO ATTRIBUTION. All I ask of people is to give me a link and some attribution when using my artwork online.
This is called 'being courteous'. Not to mention, what you did was ILLEGAL. It is called 'stealing stuff'. Sort of like shoplifting.
Please repair this. All you have to do is provide the link to my own story which happens to compliment your own story in the first place. See how easy this is?
Thank you in advance.
Elaine Meinel Supkis