“MAD AS A HATTER” CAMPAIGN

The Clean Air Council’s “Mad as a Hatter” campaign is focused on educating the

public about the dangers of mercury in the foods we eat. Our goal is to warn the public against many health hazards

associated with eating food contaminated with mercury.

Clean Air Act Amendment of 1990 and mercury in the environment

• The Environmental Protection Agency was required by law to do a comprehensive study of mercury in the environment. In 1997, the Agency’s report to Congress concluded that – The major route of mercury exposure in the

United States was by eating fish– The source of the mercury in the fish was

primarily from air emissions.

TUNA : TO EAT OR NOT TO EAT?

THAT IS THE QUESTION! OR

HOW MUCH MERCURY IS SAFE TO EAT?

Why are we asking this question today?

• Mercury levels have tripled in our environment in the past 200 years.

• It is in some foods we enjoy eating. • It affects developing fetuses, new born

infants, children, as well as adults.• It can cause a lowering of IQ in newborns.• It can affect sight, hearing, balance,

kidneys and hearts .

(Links for more information are in italics)

WHERE DOES MERCURY COME FROM?

Wet and dry

deposits

(*Numbers are in metric ton, one metric ton equals approximately 2200 pounds.)

Released from the ocean

Have you heard about methyl mercury?

• Of all forms of mercury, methyl mercury is the most dangerous form found in living organisms.

• The United Nations Environmental Program lists methyl mercury as one of the six most serious pollution threats to the planet.

• METHYL MERCURY IS FOUND IN TUNA

(Links for more information are in italics)

Why does tuna have so much methyl mercury in its tissues?

• Many species of tuna grow large, live a long time, and are at the top of their food pyramid.

• Tuna are like piggy banks but instead of collecting money they collect methyl mercury by eating fish that have eaten smaller fish.

(Links for more information are in italics)

What is this process called?

Food chain Concentration

and accumulation

.

(Links for more information are in italics)

How does methyl mercury get into humans?

Actually tuna is not at the top of the food Chain,

we are and

•We eat tuna!(Links for more information are in italics)

WHY PICK ON TUNA?

• If no one ate it, it would not matter, but It is one of the top five seafood consumed by the U.S. public.

• Shrimp, salmon, pollock and catfish (the other four) have very low levels of methyl mercury and are safe to eat

• But tuna has a lot of methyl mercury in its tissues.• The more tuna you consume the more methyl mercury you

consume.

(Links for more information are in italics)

We know that eating tuna steaks, tuna sushi, or canned tuna means we are also eating mercury.

We know the average amount of mercury present in canned, fresh, and frozen tuna.

WHAT ELSE DO WE KNOW?

WHAT SHOULD WE DO?

• Protect our families by education them about the hazards of eating

those fish with high levels of mercury!!

WHAT ELSE SHOULD WE KNOW?

EPA investigators have estimated that over 300,000 newborns are born each year overexposed to

unhealthy mercury levels in utero! Should we worry?

YES!!(Links for more information are in italics)

HOW MUCH MERCURY IS SAFE TO EAT?

• No one knows how much methyl mercury we can safely consume.

• The U.S. Food and Drug Administration says we can eat tuna that contains up to 1.00 ppm. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency urges us to not eat fish that contains more than 0.50 ppm.

• Who is right? WHAT SHOULD YOU DO?

(Links for more information are in italics)

ARE YOU SENSITIVE TO MERCURY?

• Some people are very sensitive to the high mercury in tuna fish and show symptoms if they eat tuna.

• Other people are not as sensitive to the high mercury in tuna and can eat tremendous amounts of contaminated fish and not show any effects.

DO YOU KNOW IF YOU ARE SENSITIVE?

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WHY ARE CHILDREN MORE SENSITIVE THAN ADULTS?

Scientific studies have shown that1. Children do not eliminate toxins like

adults.2. Children have rapid growth

processes which can be easily disrupted.

(Links for more information are in italics)

DOES YOUR WEIGHT AFFECT THE AMOUNT OF TUNA YOU CAN SAFELY EAT?

YES!

(Maximum amount is 0.1 micrograms of methyl mercury per kg of body weight per day. Calculations assumes each can contains the same average amount of methyl mercury !)

Your Weight Weekly Amount

200 lbs 19.00 oz100 lbs 9.50 oz 50 lbs 4.74 oz

(Links for more information are in italics)

FDA recommends eating up to 12 ounces a week of a variety of fish. But if you just eat tuna, are

you over the limit? Your Weight mercury limit

(FDA/EPA)200 lbs 60%100 lbs 130% 50 lbs 250%

*these number apply for 12 ounces of canned light tuna

(Links for more information are in italics)

The average can of tuna contains 0.118 ppm1 in 6 cans contains more than 0.237 ppm1 can had (7 times the average) 0.852 ppm

Conclusion: Because we do not know exactly how much mercury is in any can of tuna, we do not know which cans of

tuna are safe to eat!

Do all cans of light tuna contain the same amount of methyl mercury?

(Links for more information are in italics)

NO!

Do government agencies agree?

• The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulates commercial fishing

• The FDA maximum was 1.00 ppm

• The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regulates the sports and subsistence fisherman

• The EPA maximum was 0.50 ppm

If a fish contains too much methyl mercury does it matter

if you caught it locally or a large fishing fleet caught it?

(Links for more information are in italics)

Do you have a choice?

Seafood rich in omega 3 fatty acids and high levels of methyl mercury SwordfishSharkTilefishKing MackerelTuna

Shrimp SoleSalmon HaddockPollock SardinesCatfish OystersFlounder Herring

Seafood rich in omega 3 fatty acids and NO (or low) methyl mercury

(Links for more information are in italics)

TUNA : TO EAT OR NOT TO EAT? THAT IS THE QUESTION!

• There are some diets that emphasize eating lots of seafood , and the main seafood is tuna.

• Should you follow the “tuna and water 3 day” diet used by some bodybuilders?

• How much methyl mercury should your fetus be exposed to? Your spouse? The rest of your family?

• ONLY YOU CAN ANSWER • THESE QUESTIONS!

(Links for more information are in italics)

THE END

For additional information contact Mervyn Kline, PhD,

The Mercury Pollution Specialist (mkline@cleanair.org)

at The Clean Air Council

www.cleanair.org135 South 19th Street Suite 300

Philadelphia PA 19103215-567-4004