Expecting? Eat Fish! The Benefits Outweigh the Risks..

“Advice that limits seafood consumption might reduce the intake of nutrients necessary for optimal neurological development.” 

12% of women reported eating no fish or seafood during pregnancy; 65% consumed up to 12 ounces (340 g) of fish per week; 23% consumed more than 12 ounces of fish per week.  

Higher seafood consumption during pregnancy was associated with lower risk of suboptimal verbal IQ. 

In every outcome measured, the lower the seafood consumption by the mother during pregnancy, the greater the risk of suboptimal development in the child. 

These data, collected over an 8-year period, from nearly 12,000 pregnant women and their children suggest beneficial effects on child development when maternal intake of fish and seafood is greater than 340 grams (> 12 ounces) per week.  These findings suggest that following the US FDA and US EPA advisory to limit fish and seafood intake during pregnancy may result in suboptimal neural development in children; risk from the absence of nutrients may be greater than risk of harm from potential exposure to mercury. 

Vannice GK, Byelashov A, Rice, B.  Advances in EPA & DHA Research: EPA and DHA Omega-3 intake during pregnancy and developmental outcomes in children.  Quarterly Journal of Significant Omega-3 Research, 03;(03), 2010.

Hibbeln JR, Davis JM, et al. Maternal seafood consumption in pregnancy and neurodevelopmental outcomes in childhood (ALSPAC study): An observational cohort study. Lancet, 2007;369:578-585.