Adding Fish to Diet May Reduce Risk of Alzheimer's

AP ^ | Monday, July 21, 2003

[presidio9]

Older people who eat fish at least once a week may cut their risk of Alzheimer's (search) by more than half, a study suggests.

The study adds to the evidence that diet may affect a person's chances of developing the mind-robbing disease that affects 4 million Americans.

[this_ol_patriot]

Uh-huh. And how does this mesh with the articles about the studies telling people to limit amount and kinds of fish they eat because of mercury? Tuna is one of the fish listed to limit due to concern over mercury poisoning.

Know your fish, I would not eat Tuna steaks everyday if I was pregnant and no White Snapper, Shark, Marlin or Swordfish. The fish we eat that comes from large mature fish contains more mercury than smaller young fish. Sardines are various species of small herrings, pilchards and related fish.

U. S. Food and Drug Administration
Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition
Office of Seafood
May 2001

Mercury Levels in Seafood Species

The following tables provide the mean and range of mercury levels in a variety of fish and shellfish

Table 1
Fish With Highest Mercury Levels

SPECIES	MEAN (PPM)	RANGE (PPM)	NO. OF SAMPLES
Tilefish	1.45	0.65-3.73	60
*Swordfish	1.00	0.10-3.22	598
King Mackerel	0.73	0.30-1.67	213
*Shark	0.96	0.05-4.54	324

Table 2
Fish and Shellfish With Much Lower Mercury Levels

SPECIES	MEAN (PPM)	RANGE (PPM)	NO. OF SAMPLES
Grouper (Mycteroperca)	0.43	0.05-1.35	64
Tuna (fresh or frozen)	0.32	ND-1.30	191
*Lobster Northern (American)	0.31	0.05-1.31	88
Grouper (Epinephelus)	0.27	0.19-0.33	48
*Halibut	0.23	0.02-0.63	29
*Sablefish	0.22	ND-0.70	102
*Pollock	0.20	ND-0.78	107
*Tuna (canned)	0.17	ND-0.75	248
*Crab Blue	0.17	0.02-0.50	94
*Crab Dungeness	0.18	0.02-0.48	50
*Crab Tanner	0.15	ND-0.38	55
*Crab King	0.09	0.02-0.24	29
*Scallop	0.05	ND-0.22	66
*Catfish	0.07	ND-0.31	22
*Salmon (fresh, frozen or canned)	ND	ND-0.18	52
*Oysters	ND	ND-0.25	33
*Shrimps	ND	ND	22

Table 3
Fish With Methylmercury Levels Based on Limited Sampling

Data presented in Table 3 are based on limited sample sizes and therefore have a much greater degree of uncertainty

SPECIES	MEAN (PPM)	RANGE (PPM)	NO. OF SAMPLES
*Red Snapper	0.60	0.07-1.46	10
Marlin	0.47	0.25-0.92	13
Moonfish	0.60	0.60	1
Orange Roughy	0.58	0.42-0.76	9
Bass Saltwater	0.49	0.10-0.91	9
Trout Freshwater	0.42	1.22 (max)	NA
Bluefish	0.30	0.20-0.40	2
Croaker	0.28	0.18-0.41	15
Trout Seawater	0.27	ND-1.19	4
*Cod (Atlantic)	0.19	ND-0.33	11
Mahi Mahi	0.19	0.12-0.25	15
*Ocean Perch	0.18	ND-0.31	10
Haddock (Atlantic)	0.17	0.07-0.37	10
Whitefish	0.16	ND-0.31	2
Herring	0.15	0.016-0.28	8
*Spiny Lobster	0.13	ND-0.27	8
Perch Freshwater	0.11	0.10-0.31	4
Perch Saltwater	0.10	0.10-0.15	6
Flounder/Sole	0.04	ND-0.18	17
*Clams	ND	ND	6
Tilapia	ND	ND	8

*Fish and shellfish among the most consumed of the domestic seafood market

Sources of methylmercury data:

FDA database FY 85-99
EPA Mercury Study Report to Congress, 1997
A Survey of the Occurrence of Mercury in the Fishery Resources of the Gulf of Mexico Report (2000)
NMFS 1976, 1978 Report

[.38sw]

Interesting chart. It doesn't look the same as the one I saw last week while sitting in the waiting room of my Dr.'s office. Fresh tuna was high on the mercury content list (stay away from the sushi and sashimi!). It did have canned tuna as lower in mercury content.

[SamAdams76]

Since I have a tin of sardines for lunch each day, the cost is much lower than if I had a more traditional lunch (such as a sandwich and chips). I get two tins of these sardines for $3.00. So my lunch costs me only $1.50 a day. Looked at in that context, this fish is pretty cheap.

Sometimes I put Tabasco sauce on the sardines. An acquired taste.

[this_ol_patriot]

Did you try the Chipotle flavored Tabasco sauce on them? Not too shabby. Yes I know what you mean by the price it's just if you had to buy them buy the pound you realize you are paying 6 or 8 bucks a pound. I eat a can a day for lunch along with a cup of concord grape juice, a banana and a small aspirin. Went from constant foot pain and no hair on my lower legs and feet to no more pain at all and the hair is growing back like mad. The pain and lack of hair is a sign of hardening of the arteries.

[talleyman]

Caviar emptor

[presidio9]

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/950561/posts

[Aracelis]

Blackened Redfish, anyone? :^)

[PatrickHenry]

I certainly hope pork rinds will be found to be beneficial. I like them better than fish.