By Carol Church, Writer, Family Album

Reviewed by Linda Bobroff, PhD, RD, LD/N, Department of Family, Youth, and Community Sciences, University of Florida

When I was pregnant with my first child, I battled morning sickness for the first three months. Like many pregnant women with queasy stomachs, I often found myself craving particular foods. I remember eating a lot of crackers and fruit sorbet, but I also had a thing about a particular tuna fish sandwich available at a local restaurant. (I know—weird choice for someone with nausea!)

However, I did worry a little about that sandwich. I’d heard that pregnant women needed to be careful about eating tuna due to its mercury content. At the time, it also seemed to me that there was some general concern and confusion about eating fish during pregnancy.

So I was interested to read about new draft guidelines regarding pregnant women and seafood consumption. In fact, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) are now encouraging pregnant and nursing women, as well as young children, to eat more fish, barring a few species.

Why the change? Recent FDA research has shown that many pregnant women and children now eat little to no fish. This may be due to worries over its safety. Yet plenty of research shows that eating low-mercury fish is good for our health, and the health of unborn babies as well. The nutrients found in fish, such as omega-3 fatty acids, can benefit children’s and babies’ growth and even their cognitive development and IQs.

Under the new guidelines, the FDA and EPA now recommend that pregnant and nursing women and young children eat a minimum of two servings per week of low-mercury fish and seafood, such as salmon, cod, tilapia, or catfish. Plenty of other species are also beneficial to eat; for more details, check out the list.

The agencies do continue to discourage women from eating four types of fish known to be high in mercury (which is a toxin): swordfish, shark, king mackerel, and tilefish sourced from the Gulf of Mexico. Also, pregnant and nursing women and young children are advised not to eat raw fish, such as sushi.

What about my tunafish sandwich? The FDA considers light canned tuna a safe, low-mercury fish. However, it advises this group to limit albacore tuna to 6 ounces per week.

Do you have an angler in your family? Locally caught freshwater fish (from streams, rivers, and lakes) can be a bit trickier, due to the possibility of specific local advisories. For more, take a look at the guidelines.

These days, pregnant women hear quite a bit about all the things they shouldn’t eat or need to be careful about. It can feel limiting, even though we certainly all want to do what we can to ensure that our babies will be healthy. It’s nice to hear a recommendation that encourages women in this group to eat more of a healthful food.

(Photo credit: Fish suppers window, in Fish and chip shop, Whitstable by Paul Wilkinson. CC BY 2.0. Cropped.)

References:

Food and Drug Administration. (2014). FDA and EPA issue draft updated advice for fish consumption. Retrieved from http://www.fda.gov/NewsEvents/Newsroom/PressAnnouncements/ucm397929.htm

Food and Drug Administration. (2014). Fish: What Pregnant Women and Parents Should Know. Draft Updated Advice by FDA and EPA. Retrieved from http://www.fda.gov/Food/FoodborneIllnessContaminants/Metals/ucm393070.htm

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