ALERT: Unpredictable mercury levels in canned tuna

[Consumer Reports]   Dear Friend, Consumer Reports’ testing of canned tuna released today found worrisome levels of the toxin mercury in some cans, prompting our safety experts to recommend that pregnant people avoid canned tuna altogether because of the health risks to developing babies in the womb. Yet the Food and Drug Administration, which sets consumption guidelines for the fish, continues to give the green light for those who are pregnant to eat up to three servings of canned light tuna, or one serving of canned albacore tuna, weekly. Since babies exposed to mercury in the womb can have neurological and developmental damage, it’s time the FDA gets serious about this toxin! [Join us in calling on the FDA to update its canned tuna guidelines for pregnant people, so developing babies are not exposed to harmful levels of mercury.]( [Sign the Petition]( Mercury is a known neurotoxin, and is found throughout our oceans due in part to man-made pollution. Large fish like tuna tend to have higher levels from eating smaller fish. And our tests of five popular brands – Bumble Bee, Chicken of the Sea, StarKist, SafeCatch and Wild Planet – found that larger ‘albacore’ tuna varieties had higher levels of mercury than smaller types of tuna, branded as ‘light’ and ‘skipjack.’ In fact, the albacore products we tested had three times more mercury, on average, than the others. Compounding this concern, individual cans can sometimes have much higher levels than those allowed under current FDA guidelines. “From can to can, mercury levels can spike in unpredictable ways,” says Consumer Reports’ Senior Scientist Michael Hansen, who recommends those who are pregnant avoid all canned tuna. [Please join with us in calling on the FDA to update its guidelines on canned tuna consumption for pregnant people!]( [Sign the Petition]( This is important information, so after you sign the petition, please share this email with anyone you know who eats canned tuna on a regular basis. The results of our testing and our advice for pregnant people and everyone else who eats tuna [can be found here.]( Thank you, Meg Bohne Consumer Reports [Unsubscribe from Consumer Reports action alerts.]( © 2022 Consumer Reports, 101 Truman Avenue, Yonkers, NY, 10703 [Contact Consumer Reports](