Which fish pregnant should eat

Fish is the primary dietary source of omega-3 fatty acids. Omega-3 fatty acids are essential nutrients that we can’t synthesize, we have to eat.  Because they are necessary for optimal fetal brain, eye development it’s recommended for pregnant women to consume a high amount of fish. However.

Most man-made emissions are released from burning coal laced with mercury.  Mercury moves through the air and is deposited in water and finds its way into fish, accumulating especially in fish that are higher up the food chain.

Mercury can cross the placenta to harm the rapidly developing nervous system, including the brain.  Studies (in Boston, New York, Krakow, Seychelles Islands, Granada, etc)  associated prenatal methylmercury exposure with impaired developments of sensory, motor, and cognitive functions, resulting in learning difficulties, poor coordination and inability to concentrate.

Therefore pregnant women and nursing mothers should be aware of better and worst choices when it comes to seafood items, so they can choose wisely:  E.g.  low mercury choices include shrimp, salmon, sardines, tilapia, scallops, clams and mussels, pollock, crabs, catfish flounder and sole.

Generally high mercury levels were found in tuna, marlin, shark, barracuda and swordfish.

(Sources: Emily Oken, MD, MPH, Harvard Medical School – Perspective on potential benefits and harms of fish consumption; Edward Groth, PhD for Zero HG An Overview of Epidemiological Evidence on the Effects of Methylmercury on Brain Development, and a Rational for a Lower Definition of Tolerable Exposure;)