Food is a bit of a minefield when you are pregnant or breastfeeding - you are trying your very hardest to give your baby-to-be the very best start in life by eating a balanced, nutritious diet. But with so much advice flying about, it can be difficult to know what you can and can't eat.
One major minefield is fish and in particular, fish containing mercury as high levels of mercury could potentially harm the development of a baby's central nervous system. So is fish safe to eat during pregnancy or when breastfeeding? Which fish can I eat and which have high levels of mercury? How often should I eat fish?
What's the dish on fish? It's a first-rate source of lean, baby-building protein — an essential ingredient throughout the making of your amazing baby, but an especially important one in the third trimester, when brain growth is fast and furious. What's more, fish, especially the fattier varieties, is an excellent source of DHA, the fabulous fat that's known to boost baby brain power. At 28 weeks pregnant, it benefits your brain power, too — getting enough omega-3s can improve your memory (remember when you had one of those?) and your mood (a low intake of DHA during pregnancy is linked to postpartum depression). Plus, fish deserves those heart healthy headlines — a diet rich in fish lowers the risk of cardiac disease by stabilizing heart rhythms, reducing blood clotting, and lowering blood pressure.
But there's a dark side to the fish story. It's true that some fish, particularly large ocean-faring fish (and especially predator types) contain high levels of mercury, a distinctly baby-unfriendly toxin. Others, especially those that frequent polluted lakes and rivers, are laden with PCBs, a chemical you definitely don't want to be feeding a fetus — or an infant. To play it safe, you'll need to keep all those fish off your dish while you're pregnant, as well as when you're nursing. And to play it extra safe, you'll have to limit other kinds of fish as well. When fishing for dinner that's healthy and safe, take these guidelines along:
Avoid: Shark, swordfish, king mackerel, fresh tuna, sea bass, tilefish, mahimahi, grouper, amberjack, and fish from contaminated waters
Limit to six ounces per week: Canned (or packaged) albacore tuna and freshwater fish caught by family and friends
Limit to 12 ounces per week: Shellfish, canned (or packaged) light tuna, smaller ocean fish, farm-raised fish, and store-bought freshwater fish
Safely eat: Wild salmon, sole, flounder, haddock, halibut, ocean perch, pollack, cod, and trout
For the latest information on fish safety, contact the FDA or the EPA.
Heard conflicting salmon stories, too? ("Eat lots of it — it's good for you!" or "Make sure you don't eat too much — it's bad for you!") Salmon's definitely one of nature's best providers of DHA — but to make sure you're not also feasting on the high levels of PCBs too often found in farmed salmon, always opt for wild (which also contains more of those healthy fats) or organically raised farmed. Can't find either? Just follow these fish tips (it's smart to follow them no matter what fish you're choosing): Go skinless, trim dark meat thoroughly, and cook your fillet through (most of the chemicals found in fish accumulate in skin and dark meat, most of what's left will drain out during a thorough cooking).
One major minefield is fish and in particular, fish containing mercury as high levels of mercury could potentially harm the development of a baby's central nervous system. So is fish safe to eat during pregnancy or when breastfeeding? Which fish can I eat and which have high levels of mercury? How often should I eat fish?
What's the dish on fish? It's a first-rate source of lean, baby-building protein — an essential ingredient throughout the making of your amazing baby, but an especially important one in the third trimester, when brain growth is fast and furious. What's more, fish, especially the fattier varieties, is an excellent source of DHA, the fabulous fat that's known to boost baby brain power. At 28 weeks pregnant, it benefits your brain power, too — getting enough omega-3s can improve your memory (remember when you had one of those?) and your mood (a low intake of DHA during pregnancy is linked to postpartum depression). Plus, fish deserves those heart healthy headlines — a diet rich in fish lowers the risk of cardiac disease by stabilizing heart rhythms, reducing blood clotting, and lowering blood pressure.
But there's a dark side to the fish story. It's true that some fish, particularly large ocean-faring fish (and especially predator types) contain high levels of mercury, a distinctly baby-unfriendly toxin. Others, especially those that frequent polluted lakes and rivers, are laden with PCBs, a chemical you definitely don't want to be feeding a fetus — or an infant. To play it safe, you'll need to keep all those fish off your dish while you're pregnant, as well as when you're nursing. And to play it extra safe, you'll have to limit other kinds of fish as well. When fishing for dinner that's healthy and safe, take these guidelines along:
Avoid: Shark, swordfish, king mackerel, fresh tuna, sea bass, tilefish, mahimahi, grouper, amberjack, and fish from contaminated waters
Limit to six ounces per week: Canned (or packaged) albacore tuna and freshwater fish caught by family and friends
Limit to 12 ounces per week: Shellfish, canned (or packaged) light tuna, smaller ocean fish, farm-raised fish, and store-bought freshwater fish
Safely eat: Wild salmon, sole, flounder, haddock, halibut, ocean perch, pollack, cod, and trout
For the latest information on fish safety, contact the FDA or the EPA.
Heard conflicting salmon stories, too? ("Eat lots of it — it's good for you!" or "Make sure you don't eat too much — it's bad for you!") Salmon's definitely one of nature's best providers of DHA — but to make sure you're not also feasting on the high levels of PCBs too often found in farmed salmon, always opt for wild (which also contains more of those healthy fats) or organically raised farmed. Can't find either? Just follow these fish tips (it's smart to follow them no matter what fish you're choosing): Go skinless, trim dark meat thoroughly, and cook your fillet through (most of the chemicals found in fish accumulate in skin and dark meat, most of what's left will drain out during a thorough cooking).
