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Eat Fish Safely Update

Fish is a good, low fat, and economical source of protein. Many healthy heart programs recommend eating more fish meals. However, fish tend to take up chemicals such as mercury and polychlorinated biphenyl's (PCBs) so that eating fish may affect your family's health, especially for persons in high risk groups. (You are in the High Risk Group if you are pregnant women, a woman of child-bearing age, a nursing mother or a child under the age of 6. All others are in the low risk group.)

The CT Department of Public Health (CTDPH) publishes a fish advisory brochure every June. You may wish to get a copy, as it contains very specific information about eating CT fish and other fish as well as important information about CT fishing. It is a must for fisherman!

Whether you catch fish or just eat them, there are ways to reduce your risk of exposure to unhealthy chemicals. Some highlights of the brochure are provided here:

• For freshwater fish caught in Connecticut, persons in the high risk group should consume no more than one meal per month. (More restrictions apply to fish from certain water bodies.) For the low risk group, consumption should be limited to no more than one meal per week. This is because most freshwater fish in CT contain enough mercury to cause some limitations on consumption.
• Most CT trout, (but not all) are safe to eat. However, there are limits on trout from certain waterbodies due to PCBs and on large trout from lakes due to mercury. Obtain the map for the specific waterbodies.
• Most fish from Long Island Sound are safe to eat except for listed restrictions on Striped Bass and Bluefish.

For fish from the store, follow these guidelines:

• Persons in high risk groups should limit fish meals to 2 per week when purchasing fish from a market or restaurant. Choose from a variety of species, including canned tuna.
• Persons in high risk groups should not ever eat swordfish, shark, king mackerel, tilefish, striped bass or bluefish.
• For all persons, choose from these fish more often: haddock, sardines, Atlantic mackerel, flounder, cod, light tuna (canned), Pollock, shellfish (oysters, shrimp, clams, scallops, lobster) and salmon-wild. (Canned salmon is low in contaminants so it is a good choice. Fresh or frozen salmon fillets are typically from farm-raised fish. These can contain more contaminants than wild salmon so they should be eaten only once per week.)
• For all persons, choose these less often or never: halibut, tuna steak, white tuna (canned). Persons in low risk groups may choose less often or never to eat swordfish, shark, king mackerel, tilefish, striped bass or bluefish (unlike the high risk group who should never choose from these.)
• Light tuna has less mercury than white tuna.
• The tomalley portion of the lobster (the green stuff) can be high in contaminants and should not be eaten, especially by high risk groups.
• You will eat less PCBs if you remove skin and other fatty parts, and if you cook fish on a rack (broil) so that fat can drip away from the flesh.
• Remove and do not eat the organs, head, skin and the dark fatty tissue along the backbone, lateral lines and belly.
•  Mercury is in the edible (fillet) portion of fish. Therefore, you cannot lower your exposure to mercury by cooking or cleaning the fish.
• It is important to remember that large fish tend to have the highest levels of PCBs and mercury. Therefore, eat small fish (perch, small trout, sunfish, etc.) instead of large fish whenever possible.

For more information go to the CTDPH website, www.dph.state.ct.us/fish.htm. or contact QCHD,  District residents (Hamden, North Haven and Woodbridge) can call QVHD, 203.248.4528. Or you can request information online or through email, dculligan@qvhd.org

Quinnipiack Valley Health District
1151 Hartford Turnpike
North Haven, CT 06473

Phone. (203)248-4528
Fax. (203)248-6671
E-Mail. info@qvhd.org