A new scientific study published in the Environmental Research Journal measured mercury levels in seafood from retail fish markets in Chinese neighborhoods in New York City. The mercury levels of the 282 specimens ranged from low levels of .004 parts per million found in tilapia to dangerously high levels of 1.150 parts per million from a tilefish specimen.
The study suggests that it is very important to provide accurate mercury in seafood information to the highest risk groups: women and children. The GotMercury.org calculator was cited as an example of a format that provides fish eaters with information how to select safer options and how many seafood meals a consumer can eat in a week.
“For example, if a consumer eats one fish meal from the ‘Up to 2/week’ category, the tabular format does not convey information about how many meals a consumer can eat from the ‘Up to 5/week’ category. Online mercury calculators are better suited to provide this kind of information than static tables (see, for example, www.gotmercury.org—advanced mode). ” – McKelvey, W., et al., Mercury and polychlorinated biphenyls in Asian market fish: A response to results from mercury biomonitoring in New York City. Environ. Res. (2010), doi:10.1016/j.envres.2010.07.002e
