Mercury in fish raises ADHD risk

[roseblood]

Study on fish intake during pregnancy

I never touch sea food, I get all my omega 3 from supplements that use algae grown in a lab. There are several brands out there. No environmental pollutants and you can get pure DHA and/or EPA, which is better for absorption than mixing them with other, competing fatty acids. I have no intention of getting pregnant anyway but my own cognitive functioning is important enough to me.

[Drewbacca]

I wouldn't put a lot of weight into any studies which don't measure any quantitative amount of mercury being consumed... given that the diet was self-reported and after the fact in addition to not being measured makes for some lousy data.

Even then, the study is restricted to a single cohort (New Bedford, Massachusetts).

On top of that, the study only shows (at best) that there is a risk to an unborn child. It makes no claims that the mercury levels (found in the diets mentioned) are a concern for an adult. Of course, there are other studies (not related to ADHD) which do encourage thoughtful dietary planning regarding mercury consumption.

Sharks and swordfish are among the top mercury carriers.

[roseblood]

Originally Posted by Drewbacca

I wouldn't put a lot of weight into any studies which don't measure any quantitative amount of mercury being consumed... given that the diet was self-reported and after the fact in addition to not being measured makes for some lousy data.

However, body mercury levels were also measured, they didn't go by fish intake alone.

Even then, the study is restricted to a single cohort (New Bedford, Massachusetts).

Yes, we as a species need to get a move on and start taking this stuff seriously enough to do more and larger studies. Nothing matters more for human quality of life than the state of the average human brain and what they are and are not capable of, so investigating the effects of known neuro-toxins should be the top priority of every government and funding body IMO. Attention abnormalities are one thing, the attention system is the most easily damaged system of the brain so it always fails first, like a canary, but any neuro-toxin potentially has the ability to make us less logical as well. Can you imagine an even less logical, rational population? Even more racists, sexists etc? Horrifying. Hopefully that's not the case and this only is making us less attentive, but who knows, no one seems to care how much we might be dumbing down the population or how to improve it enough to fund studies on the scale that it deserves.

On top of that, the study only shows (at best) that there is a risk to an unborn child. It makes no claims that the mercury levels (found in the diets mentioned) are a concern for an adult.

I didn't say it did. I've been avoiding mercury since long before this study. I talked about the alternatives just to inform people know that if it worries them, they don't have to choose between poisoning their unborn baby and depriving it of omega 3. I wouldn't want anyone to unnecessarily cut their omega 3 intake because of a study I shared.

[Drewbacca]

You're correct. They measured hair samples... which definitely shows a correlation. It doesn't eliminate enough variables though for any definitive conclusion.

I'm always in favor of more studies! Even if, I'm one of few non-specialists who actually enjoys reading them.
It's always a balancing act, paying attention to possible dangers lurking in the environment while trying to simultaneously not over-react. It's always easier to look back after the fact and say "I told you so." That goes both ways, too. Sometimes substance x ends up being dangerous as predicted; other times, it ends up being a perfectly benign or inconsequential concern.

I can't really go into a discussion regarding government policy and the knowledge level of a given population. Such a topic falls under political discussion and is therefor not permitted in the forums.

Anyways, I'm definitely not advocating that mercury shouldn't be avoided in our diets. I was just pointing out that the ADHD specific concern was restricted to the effect on the child in the womb and not the mother herself. I wasn't trying to put words in your mouth; I was making it clear for any one else who reads this thread (but not the article/study itself).

Thank you for sharing.

[Amtram]

I grew up in Massachusetts, and I think I had fish about twice in my life until I moved out on my own (my mom hated it and wouldn't cook it) but my family's still chock-full of ADHD.

There's a possibility that mercury could cause damage that would result in ADHD-like symptoms, or even be a factor in epigenetic changes during fetal development that would result in ADHD. It's certainly a neurotoxin that should be avoided as much as possible, in general. In reading the study results in more science-oriented publications, I found that the researchers do not make claims of causation, which is good of them, but might be omitted in more mainstream sources.