Eating Tuna Daily, bad for me?

n2thenight24

So someone in my real life just said to me that eating tuna daily is bad for me? I don't eat a ton of it, I have 1 foil package (2.5oz) of lean tuna daily for lunch. I like tuna, and I'm a picky eater, so it's one of the few things that are very low calorie, high in protein that I can eat day after day and still be happy. Is this bad for me? Am I poisoning myself? I really look forward to my lunch time tuna. I hate to have to find something else to switch it out with.

foxombie

I am no expert, but I HAVE heard that because tuna contains mercury, if you eat it too frequently you can create a high level of toxic mercury in your system. I think that there are other fish that have the same effect, such as swordfish.

Not being a doctor or a nutritionist, I would not be able to advise you on how much you should or shouldn't be eating, but I personally do make myself aware of how much tuna or swordfish I'm eating just to be on the safe side, and I err more towards other fish. I sometimes feed tuna to my pet skunks too and for them, I also make sure it's an occasional treat.

I think any diet benefits from having things switched up a little more with alternate sources of protein though. Even without the mercury issue, from my point of view I think it's better to have a variety of foods (though I know it can be difficult if you're not keen on various foods!)

Fozzi43

Google it..I'm sure you could find out how much is safe?

_ylime_

http://www.livestrong.com/article/458071-mercury-poisoning-with-albacore-tuna/

Machdude

The Environmental Protection Agency provides guidelines on how much canned tuna it is safe to eat. Roughly speaking, the guidelines recommend one 6 oz. can of light tuna a week for those weighing less than 110 pounds and two cans a week for the rest of us.

kitigonkukoo

I like the tuna creations, so I'm there with you. I did some research myself.

It kinda goes by your weight, but over all it's not a good idea to eat a ton of it... look it up.

Albacore is one you want to NOT eat if you do eat Tuna frequently... super high mercury content.

This is what is recommended for me (I'm 195 currently):

Light Tuna:
According to FDA health standards, you can safely eat 17.8 ounces of Light tuna tuna per week (assuming that every can of tuna has an average amount of mercury). That's almost 3 cans of tuna.


EDIT: second warning I found on albacore:

It's recommended that women of childbearing age and children under 5 not eat albacore tuna at all, because a significant portion of albacore tuna has very high mercury levels. People eating this tuna will exceed safe exposure levels by a wide margin.

PayneAS

A lot of people are concerned with mercury content from eating seafood. I don't eat a lot of seafood but my family does and the minimal research I've done states that since most of our fish comes from farms nowadays that it isn't the concern it might have once been.

glennstoudt

If this is a concern, try adding some selenium to your diet. Brazil nuts is a good source, just one or two will do. The selenium is believed to be a natural scrub-brush for metals which may or may not be contained in higher order ocean fish. And the nuts taste good too!

sannsk

And what about fresh tuna?

By the way: Is there an indication on the can in the USA of the mercury level in the tuna? I've never seen it here (europe).

n2thenight24

I did try googling, but got a lot of conflicting answers, which is why I asked!! I don't think the tuna I'm eating is albacore.

n2thenight24

And nope, it says nothing about mercury on the package.

MeMyCatsandI

A lot of people are concerned with mercury content from eating seafood. I don't eat a lot of seafood but my family does and the minimal research I've done states that since most of our fish comes from farms nowadays that it isn't the concern it might have once been.

There is definitely a lot of fish "farmng" these days. But I believe it is mostly the smaller fish, such as bass, salmon, tilapia, etc. Tuna, swordfish, and the like are much too big to be grown on fish farms. A lot of people don't know, but most tuna fish are upwards of 6' long and 500lbs (depending on the species). And the reason they contain so much mercury is because they eat smaller fish. The smaller fish are safe for us to eat because each one contains only a small amount of mercury. But the large fish eat lots of the little fish and the mercury then builds up in their system, making them more dangerous for us to eat.

Either way, I'm in trouble. I eat about 6 cans of "chunk light" tuna every week. Eeks!

MeMyCatsandI

I did try googling, but got a lot of conflicting answers, which is why I asked!! I don't think the tuna I'm eating is albacore.

It will say albacore tuna right on the can. And albacore costs almost twice what chuck light costs.

AllonsYtotheTardis

I use this list as a guide:

http://longevity.about.com/od/lifelongnutrition/a/fish_mercury.htm


I'm happy that some of my favorites are on the low-mercury list.

vanessa40

I eat it almost everyday.

MeMyCatsandI

If this is a concern, try adding some selenium to your diet. Brazil nuts is a good source, just one or two will do. The selenium is believed to be a natural scrub-brush for metals which may or may not be contained in higher order ocean fish. And the nuts taste good too!

Thanks for this tidbit. I better eat some selenium with my next can of tuna. :bigsmile:

Espressocycle

The big risk is from albacore. Choose "light" tuna and AVOID "white" or albacore, but either way, you might want to eat less if you plan on having children (and especially nursing). Try the little pouches of salmon too - they are low risk and yummy.

And fight against coal-burning power plants, which is where most of this mercury comes from!

AMHouse85

I believe it works out because tuna is a large fish and lives for quite a while they build up a higher mercury content than a small farm raised tillapia. I do know that they say it is different for men and women as mercury is very harmful to the reproductive organs and fetus development. When I was pregnant I was told to not eat more than 1 serving of fish a week.

Espressocycle

I know several guys who think that daily consumption of tuna is a goal they would like to achieve

you mean, like tuna tacos?

recee96

Great question! I eat starkist tuna pack every other day..so that's a great question to know.