Is too much tuna bad?

I have eaten up to two cans a day for weeks on end.

I'm alive and I'm fine.

I love good tuna!

I used to eat a can every day. Did it for about a month. Never had any problems at all. The only residual effect I noticed is that my body had to adjust to not getting as much protein after I lost all the weight I wanted and stopped eating the tuna every day. I'd have days where I was feening for protein and would have to grab the peanut butter or get some beef immediately. I still eat a can at least once a week for lunch. Starkist Select Very Low Sodium is my go to.

Mercury is a cumulative poison. It stays in your body for a long time after you eat it. So you might not feel the effects of it after eating it every day for only a month. But if you eat one can a week for a year or more, the mercury builds up in your system. Not everyone who does this will develop mercury poisoning symptoms, but do you really want to take a chance? You don't need to eat tuna or meat to get enough protein: beans, legumes and nuts will do just fine.

Like I said above. I didn't have any problems and that was well over a year ago. But, I knew the risk and decided it was low enough that I'd do it anyway. So, hopefully the OP can now do the same.

OP: Just because me and a lot of other people here eat/ate a can a day (or more) doesn't necessarily make it a good idea. You'll just have to read up and decide for yourself if you think it's worth the risk.

Here's a link to the NRDC chart.

http://www.nrdc.org/health/effects/mercury/tuna.asp

So far the arguments for eating a can of tuna a day include:

-It's not as bad as some other things
-I do it, so how could it be bad?
-At least it's not arsenic/cigarettes

Some really amazing reasoning you people have

The warning the FDA released was geared towards women who are pregnant, may become pregnant, nursing, or young children. So I would assume as long as you are not one of those a can of tuna a day is just fine.

http://www.fda.gov/food/foodsafety/product-specificinformation/seafood/foodbornepathogenscontaminants/methylmercury/ucm115662.htm

For men, it's probably not much of a problem to eat 1-2 cans per day or albacore tuna.

The reason it's such an issue with women is how slowly methyl mercury is eliminated.

It also readily crosses the placenta, so if you do get pregnant even small amounts of methyl mercury can have developmental effects. It's more likely in susceptible individuals, but have you ever been screened for susceptibility (don't think such a test exists, that was rhetorical).

For this reason, the FDA has to set the warning where they do. If you are not pregnant or breast feeding and don't think there's a chance you could get pregnant, then you can probably consume as much as men and be fine. Any overt toxicity isn't likely in a healthy adult even if you ate it every day.

Reading about the disaster in Minimata Bay Japan might be interesting to those who haven't heard of it. Scientists learned much of what we know of methyl mercury effects from this.


Signed,
Taylor5877, PhD Toxicology.

I eat a can a day as well and have seen no ill effects. But as a result of the mercury I tell the temperature accurate to a tenth of a degree!

I've heard about the mercury nonsense too... I suppose it's not that good for you in the long run.

I'm sorry. Nonsense? So because you don't like the way something sounds it's just nonsense now? :noway:

Have you ever heard of bio accumulation?

http://www.lvrj.com/news/study_-mercury-in-canned-tuna-high-83006612.html

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/manitoba/story/2007/02/19/tuna-testing.html

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/life/the-hot-button/heart-healthy-tuna-is-good-until-you-get-mercury-poisoning/article4190583/

Mercury is extremely high in large ocean fish like tuna. You are not supposed to exceed 3 CANS A WEEK. Especially if you are a woman and especially if you are of child bearing age.

Switch to salmon, it is not nearly as bad.


I do not get this site. Do you people never read/watch the news/been in a science class?

^^^THIS X 10

I wouldn't worry about it to the point that you ration yourself to a can per week because your afraid your going to sprout an extra arm due to mercury.

this is true too haha!

you are right you wont sprout an extra arm but you might experience sensory impairment (vision, hearing, speech), disturbed sensation and a lack of coordination

I get that after a 12 pack of Bud also. :drinker:

Dammit, I want a tuna melt now...

Yup