CHICKEN OF THE SEA
By Steven A. Shaw
When my wife was pregnant with our son, her obstetrician gave her a list of food dos and don’ts. Chief among the don’ts: alcohol, unpasteurized cheeses and raw fish. Meanwhile, every French mother I know consumed alcohol and unpasteurized cheese in moderation during her pregnancy, and my friends in Japan laugh at the notion of avoiding sushi when they’re expecting.
Indeed, in Japan, eating raw fish is considered part of good neonatal nutrition. The Japanese government is fanatical about public health, and Japanese medical scientists are among the best in the world. ... continue
Shaw notes the benefits to the developing fetus of the omega-3 fatty acids we get from eating fish. But I would add that we can also get those good omega-3s by taking fish-oil supplements (or, for that matter, vegetarian flax-seed oil supplements). Taking supplements (i.e. pills) has two advantages. 1) They are usually manufactured from catches of more sustainable fish populations, such as mackerel; and 2) most brands filter the fish oil to remove toxic substances like mercury and PCBs. As far as I’m concerned, if you’re pregnant you definitely should not be eating any sushi fish that contains a significant mercury risk.
