Guidelines for pregnant women hard to follow
Eat fish or it will hurt your baby.
That is what a maternal nutrition group told pregnant women in a
press conference Oct. 4.
Guidelines for pregnant women hard to follow
Eat fish or it will hurt your baby.
That is what a maternal nutrition group told pregnant women in a press conference Oct. 4.
Fish “uniquely contains one of the highest levels of the omega-3 fatty acids,” said Barbara Luke, a professor of nursing, obstetrics and pediatrics at the University of Miami, at the press conference. Omega-3 fatty acids are, “critically important for brain development, vision, [and] cognitive development.”
Women who are pregnant, nursing, or may become pregnant should eat a minimum of 12 ounces of fish per week, according to the Maternal Nutrition Group recommendations. Twelve ounces is about two meals.
The recommendations contradict those of the Food and Drug Administration and the Environmental Protection Agency.
FDA and EPA staff recommendations warn pregnant women against eating fish that are high in mercury. Pregnant women should choose fish that are lower in mercury, because too much mercury can hurt an unborn baby or young child’s developing nervous system. They can eat up to 12 ounces of low-mercury fish.
“Our advice notes that fish and shellfish are an important part of a healthy diet,” said Stephanie Kwisnek, public affairs specialist for the FDA, in an e-mail.
The conflicting recommendations have created confusion for some pregnant women.
Christina Paredez, a Hollister resident who is five and a half months pregnant, worries about mercury in fish.
“Yeah, a lot,” said Paredez, referring to concerns.
She eats fish about once a week, sometimes less, she said.
“I do eat fish and shrimp. I eat pretty much all of the other fish except for tuna,” Paredez said.
Paredez is aware of the recommendations, but is planning to ask her doctor before she starts eating more fish.
Brainy Babies, Healthy Kids is an educational campaign that is promoting the nutritional group’s recommendations, according to the Brainy Babies Web site.
The National Healthy Mothers, Healthy Babies Coalition, a coalition of public and private organizations dedicated to maternal and child health, sponsors Brainy Babies.
“Recent studies indicate that the nutritional benefits of fish consumption during pregnancy greatly outweigh potential risks from trace methyl mercury consumption,” according to the nutritional group’s recommendations on the Brainy Babies Web site.
The Brainy Babies Web site provides links to four studies as science that support the group’s recommendations. Three of those studies discuss the risks and benefits of seafood consumption by pregnant women.
The first study was published in the British medical journal “Lancet.” It concludes that the benefit of pregnant women eating fish outweigh the risks.
Jane Hightower, a San Francisco physician affiliated with California Pacific Medical Center and St. Mary’s Medical Center, did not agree with the findings. The data did not prove the conclusion, according to Hightower.
“[The researcher] should not have been able to say that the benefits outweigh the risks,” Hightower said.
The other two studies recommend that pregnant women eat 12 ounces of seafood per week or less.
“Seafood Choices: Balancing Benefits and Risks,” is a report brief by the Institute of Medicine. It says that “a reasonable” intake of fish for women who are lactating, pregnant, or could be pregnant, “would be two 3-ounce servings, but they can safely consume 12 ounces per week,” according to the report brief.
The third link is from a report published by the American Medical Association, entitled “Fish Intake, Contaminants, and Human Health.”
The report concludes, “the benefits of modest fish consumption (one to two servings a week) outweigh the risks among adults and, excepting a few selected fish species, among children of childbearing age.”
Ralph Armstrong, a local obstetrician/gynecologist, recommends that women eat fish consistent with the FDA and EPA recommendations.
“I know that women say, they think, ‘well I don’t want to do anything that is going to hurt my baby,'” Armstrong said. “All fish has some low levels of mercury. That doesn’t make it bad.”
Members of Healthy Mothers, such as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, were not consulted about the recommendations before they were released and do not necessarily endorse them, according to the Healthy Mothers Web site.
“The CDC was not involved in the formulation of the recommendation,” said Courtney Lenard, a public affairs specialist for the CDC. “We weren’t aware of it, and do not endorse it.”
The nutritional group’s costs were paid for by the National Fisheries Institute, the nation’s leading advocacy organization for the seafood industry, according to a document emailed by a Healthy Mothers spokesperson.
Four members of the nutritional group acted as an executive committee, according to the document. They developed the agenda for the nutritional group’s meeting and a list of scientific studies to review. In compensation for time spent planning the meeting, NFI paid the executive committee $500.
NFI paid each of the fourteen nutritional group members $1,000 for attending the meeting, according to the document. NFI also covered the cost of travel, hotel and food.
NFI had no influence in developing the meeting agenda, topics, or articles to be reviewed, according to the document.
Another document sent by the group titled “Myth vs. Reality” says that the nutritional group does not recommend that pregnant women eat as much fish as they want.
“Pregnant women need a balanced, varied diet, which should include 2 to 3 meals of seafood per week,” according to the document.
However, the Brainy Babies Web site says that pregnant, postpartum, and breastfeeding women should eat a minimum of 12 ounces of seafood per week. A press release from Healthy Mothers that is available on their Web site makes the same recommendation.
Pregnant women who are allergic to fish or do not like eating fish should not panic, according to Hightower.
“The implication that if you can’t eat fish your baby isn’t going to be healthy is ludicrous,” Hightower said. “I mean, does anybody really believe that.”
FDA and EPA Reccomendations
Pregnant and nursing mom no-no’s
High mercury fish:
Shark
Swordfish
King Mackerel
Tilefish
Pregnant and nursing moms can eat these
Low mercury fish:
Shrimp
Canned light tuna
Salmon
Pollock
Catfish
For more information visit: http://www.cfsan.fda.gov/~dms/admehg3.html.
