Fish In Your Pregnancy Diet
Fish in your pregnancy diet: A source of omega-3 fatty acids and a killer for mercury,a double-edged sword? One thing you need to be careful about including in your diet during pregnancy is fish. Read on to find out why.
Fish is a great source of protein and vitamins, and is also low in fat. In fact, the high levels of protein, omega-3 fatty acids, vitamin D, and other nutrients make fish an excellent food for pregnant mothers and their developing babies. Fish and shellfish are thus an important part of a healthy diet.
Fish as source of omega-3 fatty acids
Adding fish to your diet is a great way to boost your omega-3 fatty acids. Several studies have also shown that taking fish oil supplements, which are high in omega-3 fatty acids, is associated with a longer pregnancy and higher birth weight. Because omega-3 fatty acids are a component of brain tissue, it has been hypothesized that the developing brain of a fetus could benefit from high levels of omega-3 fatty acids.
The Problem With Fish: Fishes contain high levels of mercury that can harm your unborn baby
Fish and seafood are an important part of a balanced diet for pregnant women and those of childbearing age who may become pregnant. But there’s a serious downside to eating fish.
All fishes contain trace amounts of mercury. Some fish, however, contain high amounts of mercury. This is especially dangerous for pregnant and breastfeeding women because fetuses and newborns are very sensitive to mercury. Mercury in these fishes may harm an unborn baby in many ways. High levels of mercury can interfere with a fetus’s developing nervous system and brain. Mercury consumed during pregnancy has been linked to developmental delays and brain damage. Hence, the FDA currently recommends you to avoid fish with high levels of mercury when you’re pregnant. The benefits of eating fish can be counteracted by mercury which the fish accumulate.
It is still not clear if mercury leads to certain childhood developmental delays or problems with fine motor skills. Hence, when your including fish in your diet during pregnancy you need to be very careful about the kind of fish and the amount of fish in your diet.
Fishes to avoid: Fish that are high in mercury
Some fish contain high amounts of mercury. Eating the wrong kinds of fish can raise the level of mercury in your body. Fish that pose risk are large and long lived fish. Fishes absorb the mercury from contaminated water and accumulate more and more mercury over time in their bodies from the environment. The mercury binds tightly to the proteins in fish muscle and remains there even after the fish is cooked.
Which Fish Have the Most Mercury?
While your pregnant do not eat certain fish like Shark, Swordfish, King Mackerel, or Tilefish because they contain high levels of mercury. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) advises that pregnant women, women who may become pregnant, nursing mothers, and young children should avoid eating shark, swordfish, king mackerel and tilefish due to high levels of mercury in these fish.
Fishes that are safe: Fishes low in mercury
Fortunately, the most popular fishes, such as tuna and salmon, have lower levels of mercury and are safe to eat during pregnancy. Fishes that are low in mercury are salmon, haddock, tilapia, cod, sole, and shrimp, pollock, sardine, trout, whitefish, herring, trout and catfish. Choose these low in mercury fishes during pregnancy.
The FDA characterizes shrimp, catfish, pollock, salmon, sardines, and canned light tuna as low-mercury seafood. Crab, oyster, scallop, squid are low in mercury. Many of the fish chosen for sushi contain high levels of mercury.
How much of any fish is safe?
Even fish that is low in mercury isn’t mercury-free, so if fish are eaten in large quantities, mercury intake could add up to a significant amount. The risks from mercury in fish and shellfish depend on the amount of fish and shellfish eaten and the levels of mercury in the fish and shellfish. Hence, even safer fishes should be eaten only in moderation.
How much of fish you need to consume during pregnancy?
Even fish that is low in mercury isn’t mercury-free. Methylmercury and elemental mercury can be toxic to a fetus or young children. That is why pregnant and nursing mothers must be very careful about the amounts and types of fish they eat. FDA recommends that women who are pregnant or plan to become pregnant within the next one or two years, as well as young children should not eat more than 2 servings – 12 ounces (340 grams) of fish each week. They should include only those fish with low mercury content.
According to the FDA guidelines pregnant women can enjoy up to 12 ounces that is 2 servings of COOKED fish and shellfish lower in mercury each week.
Pregnant women should not consume more than two servings of fish per week. If your fish consumption exceeds the recommended level in a week, there’s no need for concern, simply cut back the following week. The most important thing is how your intake averages out over the weeks and months of your pregnancy.
When you eat fish twice a week, include one portion of oily fish such as sardines as thay contain omega-3 fatty acids. Oily fishes offer the benefits of omega-3 oils while avoiding any potential harmful effects. Fatty fish with low mercury content such as salmon are good for reducing cardiovascular risk.
Do not cut out fish from your diet
Do not give up fish during pregnancy altogether because of your concern for mercury. Pregnant women cutting fish out of their diets would leave out a prime source of nutrients that are important for a baby’s development.
Two recent studies looking at fish consumption in pregnant women showed that women who eat fish may actually have lower rates of preterm delivery, and their children may have higher IQs than those who do not eat fish.
In a perfect world, consuming fish every day would be ideal for boosting your omega-3 fats. As a compromise, you can eat a couple of servings of low-mercury fish per week and supplementing your diet with DHA or fish oil supplements or DHA-enriched eggs.
How fish accumalate mercury?
Fish and shellfish concentrate mercury in their bodies, often in the form of methylmercury, a highly toxic organic compound of mercury. Methyl mercury that may harm an unborn baby’s developing nervous system. Mercury and methylmercury is present in only very small concentrations in seawater. Much of the mercury, an estimated 40% that eventually finds its way into fish originates with coal-burning power plants and chlorine production plants. Small fish absorb methylmercury from water as they feed on aquatic organisms. The longer the fish lives the more methylmercury the fish accumulates in its body. Large, long-lived fish that feed on other fish (high in the food chain) accumulate the highest levels of methylmercury as they are high on the food chain. Species of fish that are long-lived such as tuna, shark, swordfish, king mackerel, tilefish contain higher concentrations of mercury than others. The older such fish become, the more mercury they may have absorbed. When these fish are consumed by humans they also consume the higher level of mercury the fish have accumulated. This process explains why predatory fish such as swordfish and sharks have higher concentrations of mercury in their tissue than could be accounted for by direct exposure alone. This is called biomagnification.
Precautions to take while eating fish caught locally
Check local advisories about the safety of fish caught locally in local lakes, rivers, and coastal areas. If you can’t find any information about a particular type of fish, eat only up to six ounces of it, one average meal of fish per week and don’t consume any other fish during that week.
Fish Exposed to Industrial Pollutants
Avoid fish from contaminated lakes and rivers that may be exposed to high levels of polychlorinated biphenyls. This is primarily for those who fish in local lakes and streams. Contact the local health department or Environmental Protection Agency to determine which fish are safe to eat in your area. This is applicable only for fish caught in local waters and not for fish from your local grocery store.