Pregnancy and Fish

What fish should women avoid during pregnancy? Pregnant women and women considering pregnancy should not eat shark, swordfish, king mackerel or tilefish because they could contain enough mercury to harm an unborn infant’s nervous system, according to an FDA advisory.The advisory says that young children and nursing women also should avoid those species of fish, which tend to live longer and have higher mercury concentrations in their tissues.

In its advisory, the FDA says that fish are an important source of protein and part of a healthful diet. Joseph Levitt, director of CFSAN, says pregnant women safely can eat 12 ounces of other types of cooked fish each week. Levitt says that it’s important to eat a variety of other kinds of fish.