Sushi - Sushi Info (Sushi Concerns) - Mercury in Sushi
Mercury
in Sushi
Although
an average person who consumes a
moderate amount of seafood containing mercury is not
prone to serious
health problems, this topic has been a very concerning issue. It is
stated in
many reports that seafood has always contained mercury in the form of
methyl
mercury at very low levels of and do not pose a threat. Japan
has
consumed a lot of seafood (especially tuna, which has the highest
mercury content of all seafoods) for hundreds of years and
there are
no data for health issues due to eating too much seafood
A
person with a healthy liver and a pair kidneys that
function properly can completely expel the low levels of methyl mercury
contained in seafood. It takes about 70 days to detox half the amount
of
methyl mercury in the body. For the cautious people, American research
papers
claim that 6 oz of tuna per week is a very safe figure. However it is
highly
recommended for pregnant women to refrain from seafood. Although it is
not a
threat to the mother, the undeveloped fetus should be kept away from
any trace
of mercury.
Mercury
naturally exists in low concentrations
in the deep sea waters. Microorganisms that dwell in this area contain
mercury,
which are then transferred to their predators, the plankton. Small
fishes feed
on the plankton, which are then preyed by the bigger ones. The higher
the fish
in the food chain, the higher the mercury content becomes. The fishes
that are highest
in mercury are the tuna family, swordfish, and shark. It is also known
that
deep sea water fishes, such as Chilean sea bass, have higher mercury
content.
In the mid 1950’s a
disease named after
Minamata City in Japan
(located in
southern Japan),
where roughly 2500 cases of severe neurological damage in patients were
reported due to industrial pollution. High amounts of industrial
mercury waste were
dumped in the Minamata bay and led to contamination of the fish that
the local
people consumed. The Minamata disease should not be confused as a
disease
resulting from consuming seafood in general. It was a result of poor
environmental
regulations, and not a natural cause. Present regulations are stricter
than
ever, and Minamata disease is not a concern any longer.
It is also important to know where the fish you regularly consume is
caught. Some areas still have poor environmental regulations,and
mercury may not only be the issue of concern.
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