59% Of The Tuna Americans Eat Is Not Tuna

By Dr. Mercola
Mercola

When you eat tuna, there’s a good chance you’re not actually eating tuna. Instead, the majority of fish labeled ‘white tuna’ may actually be escolar, a type of fish that can cause serious digestive effects, including oily anal leakage.

Oceana, the non-profit ocean protection group that revealed the findings, further found that nearly 60 percent of ‘tuna’ sold at restaurants and grocery stores is another type of fish entirely – and the results fared worst for sushi restaurants.

Love Sushi? Skip the So-Called ‘Tuna’ (Ahi)

Oceana conducted DNA testing on more than 1,200 fish samples across the US and found that one-third were mislabeled. While red snapper had the highest mislabeling rates (87 percent of ‘red snapper’ samples were not actually red snapper), tuna was a close second, with 59 percent mislabeled.

At sushi restaurants, however, 74 percent of fish samples were mislabeled. This included every single sushi restaurant from which samples were tested, even in major metropolitan areas like Chicago, Austin, New York and Washington DC.

According to Oceana’s 69-page report, in many cases the mislabeled fish had been substituted for cheaper, less desirable and/or more readily available fish varieties. The results showed that:

• Mislabeling was found in 27 of the 46 fish types tested (59 percent)
• 87 percent of fish sold as snapper was actually some other type of fish
• 59 percent of tuna was some other type of fish
• 84 percent of “white tuna” sold in sushi venues was actually escolar, a fish associated with acute and serious digestive effects if you eat just a couple of ounces
• Grouper, halibut, and red snapper were sometimes substituted with king mackerel and tile fish, two types of fish the FDA advises pregnant women and other sensitive groups to avoid due to dangerously high mercury content

Only 1 Percent of Imported Seafood Is Tested for Fraud

How are so many seafood retailers getting away with selling mislabeled fish? To put is simply, no one is minding the store…

More than 90 percent of the seafood consumed in the US is imported, yet only 1 percent of imports are inspected for fraud, which may explain this clearly out-of-control situation. Oceana reported:

“Our findings demonstrate that a comprehensive and transparent traceability system – one that tracks fish from boat to plate – must be established at the national level.

At the same time, increased inspection and testing of our seafood, specifically for mislabeling, and stronger federal and state enforcement of existing laws combatting fraud are needed to reverse these disturbing trends.

Our government has a responsibility to provide more information about the fish sold in the U.S., as seafood fraud harms not only consumers’ wallets, but also every honest vendor and fisherman cheated in the process – to say nothing of the health of our oceans.”

Another Reason to Avoid Tuna: It’s Typically Loaded With Mercury

Fish has always been the best source for the animal-based omega-3 fats EPA and DHA, but as levels of pollution have increased, this health treasure of a food has become less and less viable as a primary source of beneficial fats. This is particularly true for tuna, which tends to be a higher mercury fish.

One study from the U.S. Geological Survey found that ALL tuna tested contained fairly high amounts of mercury. The contamination may be even worse in restaurants, again confirming that eating restaurant tuna is a risky proposition.

Further, according to a separate study, toxicological testing revealed that tuna sold in restaurants actually contained HIGHER amounts of mercury than the store-bought variety. The reason for this is because restaurants tend to favor certain species of tuna, such as bluefin akami and bigeye tuna, which had significantly higher levels of mercury than bluefin toro and yellowfin tuna.

Unfortunately, mercury tends to accumulate to a greater degree in muscle than in fat, rendering these highly prized, leaner species of tuna more susceptible to high contamination.

Another explanation is that restaurants tend to buy larger sized fish, which in turn contain larger concentrations of mercury due to their size. Remember, the larger the fish the longer it has lived, and the more time it has had to bioaccumulate toxins like mercury from the ocean.

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Sources :

1. Mercola
2. Image Credit

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