Mercury Levels Higher in Some Imported Tuna
July 25 2006
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The environmental group Defenders of Wildlife have found that many imported cans of tuna have mercury levels higher than the U.S. federal safety limit. The highest levels of mercury were found in tuna from Ecuador and Mexico.
Exceeding the Limit
Defenders of Wildlife had a laboratory test more than 150 cans of tuna from Ecuador, Mexico, Costa Rica, Thailand, Malaysia, the Philippines and the United States. The analysis showed that tuna from Latin America had the highest mercury levels, sometimes greatly exceeding the government limit of 1.0 parts per million. This was true even for light tuna, which the FDA considers to be low in mercury.
Learning Disabilities and Other Damage
About half of the canned tuna in the United States is imported. The federal government advises pregnant women, nursing mothers and young children to avoid fish with high levels of mercury. Elevated mercury levels have been linked to learning disabilities in children and to heart, nervous system and kidney damage in adults.