News Coverage
CAN TUNA HABIT, MOM Mercury called risk to fetuses
Published July 25, 2002
Pregnant women should be warned not to get hooked on canned tuna, a scientific panel told the government yesterday.
The experts urged the Food and Drug Administration to inform moms-to-be that mercury in tuna could cause brain damage in their unborn children if they eat too much of it.
The warning would not include fresh or frozen tuna, although those forms have been found to contain more mercury than canned tuna. At issue is a warning label that would be placed on tuna cans. The warning would not advise pregnant women to cut tuna out of their diets, but to limit their consumption to a yet-to-be-determined level.
Fish is very nutritious, often containing high levels of heart-healthy fats, plus fats important for fetal brain development.
"Nobody wants to tell people to stop eating tuna fish," said Sanford Miller of Virginia Tech University, the panel's chairman. "We're trying to balance the very positive virtues of fish, including tuna fish, with the harms." The FDA warned pregnant women last year not to eat shark, swordfish, king mackerel or tilefish because they contain enough mercury to harm a developing brain. Those fish often contain more than twice as much mercury as any form of tuna.
The FDA usually accepts such recommendations, and if it okays this one, it will have to determine how much tuna can be consumed safely.
The agency currently says pregnant women can safely eat as much as 12 ounces a week.
Advocacy groups say warning labels similar to the ones on alcohol and cigarettes should be slapped on tuna cans. However, tuna is far less dangerous than those substances.
"The bottom line is that the cigarettes have to go, the alcohol has to go," said Dr. James Reilly, an obstetrician/gynecologist at St. Vincent's Medical Center on Staten Island. "Fish should be limited, but not eliminated."
Reilly said he encourages pregnant patients to limit their fish intake to one serving a week, but added that women shouldn't panic at the possibility of canned tuna being added to the list of problem foods.
"I don't think anyone should freak or think anything terrible," he said.
"This is an educational process that's being brought out to a more public place.
"Graphic: OFF THE TABLEFoods that pregnant women should avoid: Raw meat, poultry or seafood, including oysters and clams. Unpasteurized fruit juices. Raw or undercooked eggs and food that contains them, such as Caesar salad. Soft cheeses, such as feta, Brie, Camembert and Mexican. Unpasteurized milk or foods that contain unpasteurized milk. Patas. Cold, ready-to-eat meats, seafood and vegetables.
Sources: Food and Drug Administration and the Center for Science in the Public Interest