Does anyone have a good article on what's wrong with eating fish?

October 27, 2008

Hi,

There is a nutritionist in my community who is nearly vegan but still

thinks it is better to eat some fish. Does anyone have a well-

referenced article (preferable on the scholarly side) outlining the

problems of fish consumption?

Thanks,

Esta Lewin

South Lake Tahoe, CA

October 28, 2008

Dear Esta,This is pretty much the best I have seen(see links below).It is written by Dr. Fuhrman, he has a section of Frequently asked questions on his website below is the link.It seems surprising how often people do not know about nutritional excellence, just as many non-vegetarians are ignorant about many "vegetarian facts", it seems some vegetarians maybe ignorant about nutritional excellence sometimes too. Peace,samShould we eat fish?: http://www.drfuhrman.com/faq/question.aspx?sid=16 & qindex=6Frequently asked questions: http://www.drfuhrman.com/faq/default.aspxWebsite: http://www.drfuhrman.com/Dr Fuhrman has a new, great, almost daily BLOG too: http://www.diseaseproof.com/These are two great professional books available from the website too: Nutritional Sciences: From Fundamentals to Food by Michelle McGuire and Kathy A. Beerman An Evidence-Based Approach to Dietary Phytochemicals by Jane Higdon, Ph.D.Books section of the website: http://www.drfuhrman.com/shop/books.aspxOn Oct 27, 2008, at 3:08 PM, Esta Lewin wrote:Hi,There is a nutritionist in my community who is nearly vegan but still thinks it is better to eat some fish. Does anyone have a well-referenced article (preferable on the scholarly side) outlining the problems of fish consumption? Thanks,Esta LewinSouth Lake Tahoe, CA

October 29, 2008

Here's the " Fish & Other Sea Animals " section of my web site (Eco-Eating

at www.brook.com/veg).

Feel free to share it whenever and wherever. Peace, Dan

• 8. *Fish & Other Sea Animals*:

“Seafood is simply a socially acceptable form of bush meat”, according

to Paul Watson, a founder of Greenpeace <http://www.greenpeace.org/> and

the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society <http://www.seashepherd.org/>. “We

condemn Africans for hunting monkeys and mammalian and bird species from

the jungle, yet the developed world thinks nothing of hauling in

magnificent wild creatures like swordfish, tuna, halibut, shark and

salmon for our meals. The fact is that the global slaughter of marine

wildlife is simply the largest massacre of wildlife on the planet.”

Commercial fishing is causing the *collapse of the world’s fisheries*,

having likely passed “peak fish”

<http://www.indybay.org/news/2006/02/1804015.php>, destroying marine

ecosystems, heavily polluting our oceans, and, along with climate

change, contributing to “dead zones”

<http://www.commondreams.org/headlines06/1019-09.htm>. In effect, we are

clear cutting our underwater rainforests, including the coral reefs

<http://oceanworld.tamu.edu/students/coral/> and mangroves

<http://www.zmag.org/sustainers/content/2005-01/10sharma.cfm> that

support a rich array of biodiversity, as well as providing coastal

protection, leading to the endangerment and extinction of many species

employing “the factory trawler’s wet version of a scorched-earth policy”

(Curtis White). To catch wild fish, entire schools of fish

<http://archive.greenpeace.org/comms/fish/amaze.html> are netted

<http://www.botany.uwc.ac.za/Envfacts/facts/gill_nets.htm> along with

turtles <http://www.seaturtles.org/>, dolphins

<http://www.greenpeace.org.uk/oceans/media/pressrelease.cfm?ucidparam=2004012010\

5542>,

whales

<http://www.eurocbc.org/bycatch_death_toll_may_exceed_1000_cetaceans_daily_15jun\

e2003page1156.html>,

sharks

<http://sacoast.uwc.ac.za/education/resources/envirofacts/sharks.htm>,

seals <http://nmml.afsc.noaa.gov/education/pinnipeds/seals.htm>, birds

<http://www.abcbirds.org/policy/fishing_nets.htm>, and others as

“by-catch”, or “collateral damage”, leaving a destructive and deadly

wake. In fact, over 1/5 (about 22%) of fish caught by U.S. commercial

operations is “by-catch”

<http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/11/30/AR2005113001948\

..html>

(fish that is caught, but discarded), topping more than a million tons

per year.

Aquaculture, or the factory farming of fish

<http://factoryfarming.org/fish.htm>, is also massively eco-destructive,

often leading to over-fishing of wild fish for feed, de-oxygenation of

the water, disease amongst fish and other marine animals, and the

(over)use of antibiotics, hormones, chemicals, and

genetically-engineered additives.

Further, underwater “forests” of coral reefs

<http://oceanworld.tamu.edu/students/coral/> and mangroves

<http://www.zmag.org/sustainers/content/2005-01/10sharma.cfm> are being

decimated by “rape-and-run” shrimp farming (exploiting and polluting

coastal communities for 2 to 5 years before abandoning them), commercial

overfishing and trawling, inefficient industrial shipping, and other

fish-related mega-activities with no regard for the natural world,

whether underwater or above.

Fish

<http://www.earthsave.bc.ca/materials/articles/articles/ethics/fish.html>

often contain mercury

<http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0FDE/is_2_22/ai_100961707>,

arsenic <http://www.lenntech.com/Periodic-chart-elements/As-en.htm>,

lead <http://www.lead.org.au/lanv7n1/L71-13.html>, cadmium

<http://www.e-b-i.net/ebi/contaminants/cadmium.html> as well as toxic

POPs <http://www.chem.unep.ch/pops/>, including PCBs

<http://www.idph.state.il.us/envhealth/factsheets/polychlorinatedbiphenyls.htm>,

DDT <http://www.the-piedpiper.co.uk/th13%28l%29.htm>, and dioxin

<http://www.european-vegetarian.org/evu/english/news/news974/dioxin.html>,

which can’t be removed from the fish <http://www.nofishing.net/> and

which bio-accumulate

<http://drake.marin.k12.ca.us/stuwork/rockwater/hev%20met/harmtopeople.html>

in consumers <http://www.nofishing.net/health.html>. “A major health

hazard from eating fish flesh comes from humans causing polluted aquatic

environments. Fish are repositories for the industrial and municipal

wastes and the agricultural chemicals flushed into the world’s waters”,

says Richard Schwartz, Ph.D. “Mercury, especially high in tuna and

swordfish, can cause brain damage, especially in growing children. PCBs,

dioxin, and pesticides (such as DDT) have been linked to cancers,

nervous system disorders, fetal damage, and many other health problems.

Removing fish from your meals eliminates half of all mercury exposure

and reduces one’s intake of other toxins.” According to Dr. Steve Patch,

co-director of the Environmental Quality Institute, University of North

Carolina-Asheville, “We saw a direct relationship between people’s

mercury levels and the amount of… fish people consumed”.

While fish often are said to contain high levels of protein and healthy

fats and fatty acids (especially for the fish), this may not be the case

and, in any event, there are easy alternatives for these nutrients,

including olives, flax, and hemp seeds. Additionally, fish, as with

other animals, contain saturated fat and cholesterol, which are

unhealthy. Further, fish do not contain any fiber, vitamins,

anti-oxidants, or phytonutrients, all of which are exclusive to plant

foods. A scientific review

<http://www.fishinghurts.com/feat-omega3.asp?int=weekly_enews> of

studies about fish has shown that it is not necessarily a healthy food

for humans. William Harris, M.D. <http://www.vegsource.com/harris>

determined that fish have seven times the protein that humans should

intake and that fish protein contains high amounts of the amino acids

methionine and cystine, which lead to calcium depletion and can cause

osteoporosis.

It is understandable why some people go into denial, but it should be

clear that fish <http://www.fishinghurts.com/>—as with /all/ other

animals—feel pain

<http://ananimalfriendlylife.com/2006/10/that-fish-you-caught-was-in-pain.html>,

a phenomenon in animals needed for survival and success. Being caught on

a hook is “like dentistry without novocaine, drilling into exposed

nerves” (Dr. Tom Hopkins). Being pulled /out/ of the water is like a

person being held /under/ water.

/Vegetarians protect fish, other marine animals, and the incredible

oceans they live in./

“Commercial fishing, aquaculture, and angling are environmentally

catastrophic….

*If you eat fish, you are supporting an industry that plunders our

oceans* with no regard for the horrible pain and suffering that fish and