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Health & Medicine HEALTH REPORT
December 11, 2002:
Mercury Levels in Fish
By George Grow
This is the VOA Special English Health Report.
Two studies are adding to the debate about the
health risks of eating fish containing high levels of the metal mercury.
One study suggests that people who eat fish high in mercury may increase
their risk of having a heart attack. Yet another study found no link
between mercury and heart disease.
Both studies were published in The New England
Journal of Medicine in November.
Mercury is a natural element. Some bodies of
water have become polluted with mercury. High levels of the metal have
been found in large fish, such as king mackerel, shark and swordfish.
Scientists say mercury can be harmful to people. For example, it can
harm the developing brain of a fetus or child. So some experts say that
pregnant women should avoid eating fish containing high levels of mercury.
However, the American Heart Association and
other experts have advised Americans to eat fish at least two times
a week. Fish contains important substances, including omega-three fatty
acids. These are believed to reduce the risk of heart disease.
Scientists at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School
of Public Health in Baltimore, Maryland organized one of the new studies.
They examined medical records of more than one-thousand-four-hundred
men from Israel and eight European countries. They compared men who
had suffered a heart attack with healthy men.
The scientists examined mercury levels in the
men by studying toenail particles from the men's feet. The study found
that mercury levels in the men who had a heart attack were fifteen percent
higher than those with no history of heart disease. It also showed that
men with the highest mercury levels were about two times more likely
to have a heart attack than men with
the lowest levels.
However, a study by the Harvard School of Public
Health in Cambridge, Massachusetts disputes the findings. The Harvard
scientists compared two groups of about five-hundred American men. All
the men in one group had suffered a heart attack. The other men showed
no evidence of heart disease. The Harvard scientists also examined toenail
particles for mercury. They found no link between mercury and the risk
of heart disease.
Many doctors say people should not stop eating
fish because of concerns about mercury.
This VOA Special English Health Report was written
by George Grow.
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