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Is It Safe to Eat Tuna Fish EveryDay?

 Tuna is one of the most convenient proteinsources that exists, so it can easily become aguy’s go-to lunch. But is it safe to eat it every 

day ? The short answer: Probably. But if youre wrong,you coul! en! up with mercury poisoning, whichcan cause weir! symptoms li"e tinglingsensations an! loss of balance, says #ichael$ochfel!, #.%., Ph.%., a researcher with the&nvironmental an! 'ccupational (ealth)ciences *nstitute.+*t woul! li"ely be safe for many men to eattuna every !ay, while some men coul!experience symptoms of mercury toxicity fromeating the same amount, says oo! an! %rug!ministration spo"eswoman /auren )ucher.

(ere’s why it’s so complicate!: 0ou have tobalance the bene1ts of eating 1sh with the ris"from mercury, while ta"ing into account aperson’s weight, their sensitivity to mercury, thetype of tuna, an! how much ris" youre willing tota"e, says %r. $ochfel!.2early all seafoo! contains traces of mercury,accor!ing to the %. )o the 3uestion is: twhat level !oes mercury become poisonous?

 That’s where it gets even more confusing. 2o

one "nows exactly where mercury goes from

being harmless to toxic, because you’! have to

poison people to 1n! out, says Men'sHealth nutrition a!visor lan ragon, #.).

#ost experts can agree on at least two facts,

though.

45: ish is goo! for you. 6esearch has shown

that it may lower your ris" of heart !isease

!eath, says %ariush #o7a8arian, #.%., %r.P.(.,

!ean of the rie!man )chool of 2utrition )cience

an! Policy at Tufts 9niversity. &merging but not-

yet-establishe! evi!ence suggests that eating

1sh may also help combat stro"e, obesity,

cognitive !ecline, !epression, cancer,

inammatory !isor!ers, an! asthma. 6estricting

your 1sh inta"e coul! ma"e you miss out on all

those bene1ts.

4;: The ris"s from mercury have been

overhype!. #ercury can harm the !eveloping

nervous systems of fetuses an! young chil!ren,

accor!ing to the %. But when the agency

warne! pregnant women to limit consumption of 

high-mercury 1sh in ;

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4. Pic" a mercury !ose limit from the two main

fe!eral recommen!ations. 'ne is very

conservative, the other is less so.

* 0ou coul! go with the &nvironmental Protection

gency !ose, which is safe enough for the most

vulnerable peopleGinclu!ing pregnant women.

 That !ose is .5 microgram per "ilogram per !ay.

*'r go with the Fenters for %isease Fontrol an!

Prevention, which says consuming .D

micrograms per "ilogram per !ay of mercury

poses minimal ris".

5. #ultiply your chosen !aily limit by E to 1n!

your wee"ly limit. @or the &P its .EH for the

F%F its ;.5.A

6. %ivi!e your wee"ly limit from )tep by your

!ose from )tep D to 1n! how many -ounce

servings you can have per wee". *f you’re a 5