Women who eat seafood while pregnant may be boosting their children’s IQ, says new research.
It is a common notion that expectant mothers should limit seafood and fish consumption to avoid potentially high levels of mercury.
The new research published in The Lancet is based on mothers’ observations of their children’s development and analysis of reports of their food intake during pregnancy.
National Institutes of Health researcher Dr. Joseph Hibbeln and his team concluded that “the harm [from mercury in fish] is unlikely to be greater than the overall benefits of nutrients at the concentrations usually found in seafood.”
In an accompanying letter in The Lancet, University of Rochester pediatric neurologist Dr. Gary Myers noted the “public concern and misperception” of Americans who are unaware that “there has never been even one child with prenatal mercury poisoning from consuming fish documented outside Japan.” And the Japanese cases, he adds, were only recorded “after massive industrial pollution” of waterways.
Dr. Myers also cited a public opinion survey conducted in July 2006 by Opinion Research Corporation for the Center for Consumer Freedom. That survey found that 61 percent of Americans mistakenly believe that more than 1,000 cases of fish-related childhood mercury poisoning are identified by scientists every year in the United States.
In response to Dr. Hibbeln’s groundbreaking research, Center for Consumer Freedom Director of Research David Martosko said: “There’s a growing scientific consensus that fish is brain food. Our mothers were right. But some environmental activists want to give fish the skull-and-crossbones treatment. As more research is done, this is looking more and more irresponsible. Oceana should abandon its campaign to strong-arm grocery stores into posting warning signs at the fish counter. Consumer Reports should stop treating tuna like poison. And it may be time for the Environmental Protection Agency to re-think the reasoning behind its hyper- cautionary mercury Reference Dose.”