Transcript Revised Which Fish Are Safe to Eat Display 2002

Presented by:
Rutgers Cooperative Research & Extension
Rutgers Center for Environmental Communication
U.S. Food & Drug Administration
What Women Should Know About Eating Fish
• Eating Most Fish is Very Good for Your
Health…BUT….Some kinds of fish are not good
for you or your baby. So, if you are:
Pregnant or might become pregnant
Breastfeeding
Feeding small children
• Please Read on……….
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Did You Know?
• Most fish are a healthy, low-fat source of
protein, vitamins and minerals.
• But….some fish and crabs have harmful
chemicals in them like mercury, dioxin
and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs).
• These chemicals can cause health
problems AND the fish don’t look, smell
or taste different from fish caught in
clean waters.
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How Can These Chemicals Harm
Your Family’s Health?
• Pregnant or breastfeeding women pass
harmful chemicals on to their baby.
• This can hurt the developing brain and
nervous system of a baby or young child and
cause learning problems in later years.
• Dioxins and PCBs will build up in a human
body and may increase the risk for cancer
and other diseases.
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Reduce Your Family’s Exposure to Mercury
U.S. Food & Drug Administration Recommends:
• Fish are highly nutritious, BUT women of
childbearing age and young children should avoid
these fish
– Swordfish,
– King Mackerel,
– Tilefish,
– Shark
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– Tuna
Avoid Eating Harmful Chemicals in
the Fish and Crabs You Catch
• EPA and FDA recommends limiting
consumption of freshwater fish caught by
family and friends to ONE meal per week
of six ounces of cooked fish for adults
and two ounces for a child.
• Know your local advisories about the fish
you catch.
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Eat Safe Fish 2-3 Times Weekly
• Try seafood that you can purchase in the food
store, like salmon, haddock, sole, shrimp, fish
sticks……either fresh, frozen or canned.
• Eat up to 12 ounces of safe fish per week.
• A serving of cooked fish for
adults is about 3 - 6 ounces.
• A serving of cooked fish
for children is about 2 ounces.
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To Reduce Fat & Toxins in Fish,
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Cook them like this…..
Broil, grill, bake or steam fish on a rack.
Throw away juices that drip onto the pan.
Do not fry or coat the fish in batter or
breading.
Remove and throw away the skin, the fat
along the back, the guts, belly fat and the
fatty dark meat along the length of the filet.
Warning: Skinning, removing the fat and
cooking will NOT reduce mercury levels in
fish.
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For More Information:
• US Food & Drug Administration 1-888-SAFEFOOD or
www.cfsan.fda.gov
• Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
www.epa.gov/ost/fish
• NJ Department of Environmental Protection at
609-984-6070 www.statenj.us/dep/dsr/njmainfish.htm
– Call or check website for advice on safe fishing & local
advisories for different areas of New Jersey.
• Rutgers Cooperative Research & Extension
www.rcre.rutgers.edu
This display was funded through grant support from the U.S. FDA and implemented
through the efforts of Joan Lytle, U.S. FDA, Dr. Karen Ensle, Rutgers Cooperative
Extension and Dr. Melanie Hughes McDermott, Rutgers Center for Environmental
Communication, 2002.
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