Heavy metals, such as mercury, lead, arsenic, and cadmium, are present in the surroundings. This has, in turn, resulted in the presence of heavy metals in our food, in particular seafood. As ingestion of such heavy metals over the long term may also lead to health issues, consumers are cautioned to take a nutritious and balanced diet to reduce their exposure to heavy metals.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), most human exposure to mercury is from eating fish and shellfish infected with methylmercury, each in the United States and worldwide. Methylmercury is the dominant form of mercury observed in aquatic animals, inclusive of fish. At elevated ranges, it could be harmful to the developing nervous structures of unborn toddlers and young children, affecting cognitive, motor, and sensory features. The greater the methylmercury that accumulates in a person’s bloodstream, the longer the exposure time, and the more youthful the man or woman, the greater extreme the results may be. For pregnant girls, women of childbearing age who may additionally become pregnant, nursing moms, or children, the FDA and EPA recommend in opposition to eating fish that may contain high levels of mercury. According to the organizations, consequences from too much mercury can also occur in adults outside of childbearing age.
Although mercury is obviously inside the environment, the primary source of mercury to the oceans is from the burning of coal, in addition to a few industrial and mining activities. Through rain, snow, and runoff, mercury can enter streams, oceans, rivers, and lakes where, through the effect of certain microorganisms, it undergoes a chemical transformation into methylmercury, which may be toxic. Methylmercury is significantly concentrated using planktonic microorganisms from seawater and then assimilated into animals that consume these microorganisms. Fish take in methylmercury from their food as they feed on aquatic organisms; however do not lose the methylmercury that they devour. Thus, as larger, longer dwelling species, together as tuna, king mackerel, shark, swordfish, and tilefish, feed on prey at the food chain, they continue to accumulate mercury over time. Cooking practice and heat do not reduce the mercury levels.
