# Tuna, fish oil pills and mercury. Oh my! Has my 20mo been getting mercury this whole time??



## Ophelia (Feb 16, 2005)

I took prenatal Omega Mom fish oil pills while pg and then postpartum fish oil pills since I don't eat fish and have no other source of omega 3 that I know of. Just read an article recently about mercury in fish and it said young children should not even eat tuna.

I looked at the pills and sure enough the fish oil comes from tuna. Does ALL tuna have mercury or just certain kinds? I dont' know a lot about fish except that deep sea is better because it has less mercury. Should I call the company who makes the pills and ask? I dont' know whether to quit taking them or not. I just bought 4 bottles too because they were on sale.

I also want DS to start eating some fish, what is the best kind with the least amount of mercury? I got him a tuna steak but not so sure about that now. He is also not getting any omega 3 except through my daily pills.


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## jeliphish (Jul 18, 2007)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *Ophelia* 
I dont' know a lot about fish except that deep sea is better because it has less mercury. I got him a tuna steak but not so sure about that now.

Deep sea is the worst as the bigger fish such as the larger tuna, sordfish, and sharks have the most mercury exposure. From what I have researched, tuna steak usually has large deposits of mercury. ALL fish are going to have some sort of mercury. Moderation is key.


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## chellemarie (Jan 17, 2003)

Are you still nursing? I thought breastmilk had omega-3.

What about adding flax to your diet instead of taking a fish oil supplement?


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## Ophelia (Feb 16, 2005)

Thanks, so I stay away from tuna, still not sure about the pills. I can return the ones I bought. I just don't know how low the mercury level is in the pills and if they would be honest with me if I asked.

Yep, still nursing. If breastmilk has omega 3, wouldn't it have to come from my diet?

I had bread once with flaxseed in it and my tummy was NOT happy. I cannot eat any kind of seed. I may be able to consume the oil though.

Does olive oil have any omega 3?


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## Ruthla (Jun 2, 2004)

Mercury is water-soluble and isn't present in fish oils (or maybe is present in only trace amounts.) There's no need to worry about mercury from any fish oils you took or are taking now, nor is there any need to stop taking them.

Flax oil does contain omega 3 fatty acids, but your body needs to process them to make them usable. Fish oil FAs are ready to use. Some individuals have trouble with the conversion process and will benefit from fish oils but not from flax.


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## Owen'nZoe (Sep 7, 2005)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *Ophelia* 
I looked at the pills and sure enough the fish oil comes from tuna. Does ALL tuna have mercury or just certain kinds?.

Some tuna is higher in mercury than others (canned light is supposed to be better than canned albacore), but I think it is all fairly high. I know when I was pregnant with DS, my midwife recommended fish oil supplements, but said to make sure it came from small fish, and that it said low-mercury on the bottle.

Quote:


Originally Posted by *Ophelia* 
I also want DS to start eating some fish, what is the best kind with the least amount of mercury? I got him a tuna steak but not so sure about that now. He is also not getting any omega 3 except through my daily pills.

Tuna steak is pretty high in mercury, so it is on the list of fish I am not comfortable giving to my kids, unfortunately.







We usually stick to salmon, tilapia, trout, and whitefish.

Here is some info from the NRDC that might be a starting place for deciding what fish to use and what to avoid: http://www.nrdc.org/health/effects/mercury/guide.asp


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## deditus (Feb 22, 2006)

The Environmental Defense Fund has a printable pocket guide. They have some ratings on fish oils, also.
Are you in the cities? I buy frozen Alaskan salmon from the co-ops (I think they all have it).

http://www.edf.org/page.cfm?tagID=1521


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## Ophelia (Feb 16, 2005)

Ruthla, do you have more info/website on the mercury is water soluble thing? For my own peace of mind









thanks for the safe fish lists! Yep I'm in the cities and member of a co-op. I'll see if they have the alaska salmon. Thanks!

Luckily DS never really had the tuna steak, I think only a tiny bite.


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## moonlight mom (May 19, 2007)

Most fish oil pills are free from mercury, but if you want peace of mind change brands to one that is molecularly distilled. Other brands use 3rd party testing to assure there is no mercury in the pills. Nordic naturals and carlson's brands come to mind. My 2 year old has been taking carlson's cod liver oil for kids for the past few months.


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## carnelian (Feb 24, 2006)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *Ruthla* 
Mercury is water-soluble and isn't present in fish oils (or maybe is present in only trace amounts.) There's no need to worry about mercury from any fish oils you took or are taking now, nor is there any need to stop taking them.

Flax oil does contain omega 3 fatty acids, but your body needs to process them to make them usable. Fish oil FAs are ready to use. Some individuals have trouble with the conversion process and will benefit from fish oils but not from flax.

Ruthla's right. More info here

As far as eating fish that's a little more tricky. You'll need to do some research. Alaskan salmon is generally considered safe.


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## rayo de sol (Sep 28, 2006)

I use this site http://www.gotmercury.org/ to figure out which fish to eat. It has a mercury calculator that takes into account your body weight, the type of fish consumed, and how many ounces eaten. Then it tells you how much mercury you will be ingesting.

I also use this site http://www.montereybayaquarium.org/cr/seafoodwatch.asp to supplement the mercury information with information on PCBs and endangered species of fish.

We mostly eat canned anchovies, sardines, and salmon (wild because the farmed salmon is high in PCBs), and fresh flounder, haddock, oysters, and pollock.

We avoid tuna as much as possible (sometimes it's irresistible in sushi), and we also avoid farmed salmon.

And we take cod liver oil.


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## Natsuki (May 4, 2004)

ITA that Deep sea/large fish are the highest in mercury since they're higher up the food chain. My fish oil (Nordic Naturals) is made from anchovies and sardines - very small fish.

When you buy fish oil, you need to make sure it says things like 'molecularlly distilled' or something about what standards for mercury/heavy metals presence is followed to ensure that it is undetectable and not high amounts.

There are no official government-mandated standards of quality for fish oil supplements so it really is buyer-beware and do your research.


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