What you need to know about mercury in Oregon Albacore tuna

你可能看过一份新的《世界杯在哪里买球》，该报告测试了5种名牌金枪鱼罐头，发现它们的汞含量都出现了不可预测的峰值. This does not surprise me at all- none of the brands they tested are canning US caught Albacore tuna. 那么，在海外捕捞的金枪鱼和在美国捕捞的金枪鱼有什么区别呢? 金枪鱼的年龄与鱼积累了多少汞有关:越年轻的鱼, the less mercury it has. Let me explain:

The reason mercury is an issue with tuna is because they can live up to 16 years. 所以如果你吃了一条16岁的金枪鱼，你就摄入了16年的汞，这些汞会积聚到你的身体系统中. That’s not good.

Before tuna hit maturity at about 5 years old, 它们游到靠近水面的地方，在那里它们可以用钩和线捕获可持续的捕鱼方法(这就是我们在俄勒冈州捕获它们的方法)。. 5岁以上的长鳍金枪鱼会游到更远的海底, where they are caught with nets.

我们不仅只捕捉年轻的金枪鱼(5岁以下)，这是世界上最可持续的捕捞方法之一:没有其他物种是用这种方法捕获的. 这就是我们如何确保我们只捕获和罐装年轻的金枪鱼，因为它们的汞含量要低得多，不必担心.

各大品牌都在提供海外捕捞和罐装的金枪鱼，主要是在南太平洋. These are typically old tuna, caught with nets. 在俄勒冈州，我们正好在正确的时间出现在正确的地点:每年夏天，长鳍金枪鱼都会迁徙经过我们的海岸线, where our fishermen catch the young ones who swim closer to the surface, one at a time.

我们定期测试长鳍金枪鱼的汞含量，发现其含量始终低于FDA规定的“法定限量”的10倍(测试结果可在我们的网站上找到)。. Which means you can eat as much Oregon Albacore as you want without worrying. 别忘了:吃鱼和鱼油对健康的好处对健康和长寿非常重要!

Read on for more information about mercury and tuna.

Issues Regarding Mercury in Pacific Northwest Seafood

by Michael Morrissey
Director and Professor, Oregon State University Seafood Lab, Astoria, Oregon.

汞是一种天然元素，在空气、水和所有生物中都有微量存在. Mercury can find its way into food sources through a number of channels, including natural recycling, burning of fossil fuels, and pollution. 自2002年秋季以来，人们对海产品中汞的担忧日益增加. Recently, the U.S. 美国食品和药物管理局(FDA)宣布，它将为儿童和孕妇制定一项关于汞的新建议, nursing, or thinking of becoming pregnant. 其他一些组织也发出警告，这部分人群不应食用金枪鱼等鱼类. 这些警告已经引起了对所有海产品毫无根据的恐慌，以及对什么可以安全食用或不安全食用的普遍困惑, among retailers, what to tell customers when they ask. It is hoped that this fact sheet will fill in some of the information gaps.

Mercury in Nature

Mercury exists in nature in two forms, inorganic and organic. It is the organic mercury methylmercury that concerns us here. Methylmercury binds to tissue and is the form found in fish. Some fish have more methylmercury than others, depending on their aquatic environment and where they stand in the food chain. 鱼类在以其他水生生物为食时，从环境和食物来源中通过鳃吸收汞. A general rule of thumb is that the larger the fish, the higher the level of methylmercury in its flesh. 随着化合物的积累，非常大的蓝鳍金枪鱼或旗鱼的含量往往会更高.

Federal Guidelines

尽管所有鱼类都含有微量的甲基汞，但大多数鱼类的甲基汞含量低于0.1 parts per million (ppm). Canada and the U.S. 有否就鱼类及海产品的容许汞含量订立指引. The U.S. limit is 1.0 ppm while Canada Health guidelines allow a lesser amount, 0.5 ppm. Studies have shown that the highest levels of mercury are found in sharks, swordfish, tilefish, and king mackerel.

Mercury in Tuna

The tuna issue is a complicated one. 有研究表明，一些大型金枪鱼，如蓝鳍金枪鱼，可能超过FDA的限制. Part of the confusion is that, in the past, many of the reported results listed all tunas together, making no distinction among the species (albacore, skip-jack, bluefin, yellowfin, and so on). 你可以在《世界杯买比赛平台官网》(Newsweek)等一般出版物的表格中看到，新鲜冷冻金枪鱼的含糖量为0.32 ppm, with no distinction among the different species. The range in the data is often very wide, for example, from 0.05 to 1.30 ppm，但不可能根据报告数据的方式来区分不同的物种. Therefore, a specific fishery, such as troll-caught West Coast albacore, 是否与汞含量较高的其他金枪鱼品种有不公平的世界杯买比赛平台官网. For example, 美国食品和药物管理局最近的一项研究表明，普通商业品牌的罐装长鳍金枪鱼的平均含量高于罐装“轻”金枪鱼. This is, in part, because the albacore in common brands are larger fish caught in the open Pacific, whereas "light" tuna is often the smaller skipjack species.

Seafood in the Pacific Northwest

好消息是，太平洋西北地区的一些物种的汞含量很低. 对西海岸长鳍金枪鱼的研究表明，其含量低于FDA和加拿大的指导方针, 这是有道理的，因为与其他商业捕捞的金枪鱼相比，沿海巨怪捕捞的长鳍金枪鱼很小(10到24磅). Salmon is very low in mercury, as are sardines, flounder, shrimp, and oysters. 目前正在进行一些研究项目，以更好地确定鱼类体内的汞含量，并确定太平洋西北沿岸许多鱼类的汞含量，以及可能在大小和位置上出现的差异.

Advice for Seafood Consumers

So, what do you tell your customers? For children and for women of child-bearing age, FDA的建议很可能会说，一周吃两次鱼和贝类是安全的，人们应该吃各种各样的鱼. Some species, such as shark and swordfish, should be avoided. Buying and selling local-caught salmon, shrimp, flounder, and oysters is an easy choice and there is little mercury concern. 在这些指导方针下，巨魔捕获的长鳍金枪鱼是安全的，也有充分的证据表明，食用这些物种对我们的健康非常有益. They are high in omega-3 fatty acids, 富含-3脂肪酸的鱼类饮食已被证明可以降低心血管疾病的发病率, improve mental health, and provide other health benefits. So eat and enjoy, cut down on the bluefin tuna sushi, 记住，鱼是一种营养丰富的食物，对健康有很多好处，味道也很好.

Text by Michael Morrissey, Director and Professor, Oregon State University Seafood Lab, Astoria, Oregon.

Tuna illustration by Herb Goblirsch. (illustration omitted from this accessible document; it may be found in the printable .pdf version)

2004 by Oregon State University. ORESU-G-04-003

Low Mercury? Where's the Proof?

我们接到很多电话，询问我们的鱼体内的汞含量有多低:“你说它的汞含量很低, but where is the proof?“到目前为止，我们一直在向客户发送汞分析数据和他们的订单. Now you can download a copy of the mercury analysis report (PDF, 128K) and see for yourself!

最新的长鳍金枪鱼测试结果也可以在美国长鳍金枪鱼捕捞协会网站上找到 www.americanalbacore.com