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It now appears that farmed salmon has much higher levels of PCBs and dioxins than wild salmon. This makes farmed salmon unadvisable as one of the temporary means for the alleviation, elimination and prevention of many cancers and other 'incurable' diseases - as described in these pages. |
And while some authorities may argue that things are not as bad as they may appear, the danger is far too great for all pregnant women and small children. Due to the miniscule body mass of a foetus, and the small body mass of little children, a dose which may be tolerable for an adult is a huge and dangerous dose for our unborns, for our babies and children.
This, mercury pollution and other discoveries of similar nature, drive home the point that it is absolutely essential that the complete natural range of the 72 trace elements be re-instated in all agricultural soils - by law if necessary - so that they will be present, as they once were, in all of our daily food.
Original Article:
Farmed Salmon Harbour Pollutants
Farmed salmon carry up to ten times as much cancer-causing chemicals as their wild counterparts, according to a worldwide survey of fish destined for supermarket shelves. The contaminants - a group of compounds called organochlorides - include a family of industrial pollutants called polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs). In humans, these chemicals are linked to cancer and to developmental defects such as stunted intelligence.
The findings deal a blow to salmon's perceived status as a healthy food, says David Carpenter of the University at Albany in Rensselaer, New York, a member of the study team. Salmon is rich in omega-3 fatty acids, which protect against heart disease. But, says Carpenter, the presence of PCBs means that people who have a low risk of heart problems might be advised to steer clear. The study estimates that, based on the US Environmental Protection Agency's recommended maximum intake of organochlorides, Scottish consumers would be advised to limit their salmon consumption to just six meals a year.
John Webster, scientific adviser to Scottish Quality Salmon, which represents Scotland's salmon-farming industry, says that such extrapolations are "scaremongering". "If we were to take that sort of advice we'd have nothing on the menu at all," he says. Webster says that a similar analysis by his group showed lower levels of contamination than Carpenter's team reports.
Robert Lawrence, a public-health expert at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, agrees that the risks of eating farmed salmon may outweigh the benefits for some people. "It might be good for middle-aged men but not for childbearing women and children," he says.
Carpenter and his colleagues purchased salmon from 16 cities in Europe and North America. PCB levels in fish from the world's salmon-farming hotspots - Europe, North America and Chile - were up to ten times those in wild-caught salmon. Farms in Scotland and the nearby Faroe Islands were the worst affected. This is understandable given that Northern Europe has a long tradition of industry, says Carpenter. PCBs are pumped out by the manufacture of materials such as paints and flame-retardants, and by waste incineration.
Carpenter suspects that the pollutants find their way into the small fish that are caught and processed into salmon feed. He suggests that farmers consider making their salmon vegetarian, substituting soybeans or flaxseed for fish protein, in order to reduce the problem. Lawrence agrees that fish farms could benefit from a shake-up. He points out that salmon in US farms are also fed recycled fat from slaughtered agricultural animals such as cows. By feeding the salmon material from the top of the food chain - which may already have high PCB levels - the problem can be exacerbated.
Carpenter says that those striving for a healthy heart have other options. Flaxseed oil, for example, is rich in omega-3 acids. "We're not telling people not to eat fish," he says, "but there are alternative sources."
References:
Hites, R. A. et al. Global assessment of organic contaminants in farmed salmon. Science, 303, 226 - 229, (2004).
Michael Hopkin, Nature, January 9, 2004; © Nature News Service / Macmillan Magazines Ltd. 2004
Original Abstract:
Global Assessment of Organic Contaminants in Farmed Salmon
Ronald A. Hites (1*); Jeffery A. Foran (2); David O. Carpenter (3); M. Coreen Hamilton (4); Barbara A. Knuth (5); Steven J. Schwager (6).
The annual global production of farmed salmon has increased by a factor of 40 during the past two decades. Salmon from farms in northern Europe, North America, and Chile are now available widely year-round at relatively low prices. Salmon farms have been criticized for their ecological effects, but the potential human health risks of farmed salmon consumption have not been examined rigorously. Having analyzed over 2 metric tons of farmed and wild salmon from around the world for organochlorine contaminants, we show that concentrations of these contaminants are significantly higher in farmed salmon than in wild. European-raised salmon have significantly greater contaminant loads than those raised in North and South America, indicating the need for further investigation into the sources of contamination. Risk analysis indicates that consumption of farmed Atlantic salmon may pose health risks that detract from the beneficial effects of fish consumption.
1 School of Public and Environmental Affairs, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN 47405, USA.
2 Citizens for a Better Environment, Milwaukee, WI 53202, USA.
3 Institute for Health and the Environment, University at Albany, Rensselaer, NY 12144, USA.
4 AXYS Analytical Services, Post Office Box 2219, 2045 Mills Road, Sidney, British Columbia, Canada V8L 3S8.
5 Department of Natural Resources, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853, USA.
6 Department of Biological Statistics and Computational Biology, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853, USA.
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