Do not eat?

Do not eat?

By Larry Claypool, OVO Editor

The “DO NOT EAT” tag placed on some fish species by state health boards can be a little scary, but further investigation will prove that ‘eating what you catch’ can be a healthy, and safe experience. Only a small portion of sport fish have enough contaminants that warrant the “Do Not Eat” label. It’s up to each fisherman to be informed about where they fish, and what types of fish could be dangerous to eat.
Contaminants in fish like mercury, PCBs, dioxin and mirex can be alarming. But those contaminants in fish are mostly of low concentration. That’s where knowledge comes in.

Most state health agencies provide fish consumption advisories each year. Ohio’s sport fish advisory can be found on its EPA website (see below). The advisory does list some specific bodies of water that are contaminated. For the most part fish can be eaten safely if not consumed more than twice in one month. For example, the Ohio River is listed as being tainted with PCBs in carp, flathead catfish under 20 inches, sauger, walleye and white bass. It suggests eating no more than one meal of these species per month. In parts of the Cuyahoga River, mercury and PCBs have been found in carp over 24 inches, smallmouth bass and brown and yellow catfish. Again the recommendation is to consume those species only once per month.
In some cases contamination can be more localized. In a well-known fishing stream in Columbiana County, Middle Fork Little Beaver Creek, a major ban of consuming all fish was caused by a mirex spill more than 30 years ago in nearby Salem, Ohio. Only recently was a “do not eat” advisory lifted by the Ohio EPA on Little Beaver Creek.

Health authorities offer some ways for consumers to reduce the risk of exposure to contaminants in fish. They include: when cleaning, remove all skin from fillets or steaks. (This allows fat to drain away from fish during cooking. And organic contaminants usually build up in a fish’s fat deposits and just underneath the skin.) Also trim off fatty areas along the belly, back and both sides of the fillet. And it’s safer to eat smaller fish because they can have lower chemical levels because of less body fat.

For some groups of fish it’s recommended that it be consumed only once per month. The theory is; your body can get rid of some contaminants over time. Spacing meals that include tainted fish helps prevent contaminants from building up to harmful levels in the body.

In Pennsylvania’s health advisory, it’s noted that consumers “follow a general, statewide one meal per week advisory to limit exposure to contaminants.”
Of West Virginia’s waters, several rivers have certain species of fish that are not to be eaten. The Kanawha River (downstream from I-64 bridge in Dunbar) is known to have dioxin, mercury and PCBs in flathead and channel catfish, carp, hybrid striped bass and suckers. The Ohio River has the same contaminants in carp and channel catfish over 17 inches and the Potomac River has a ‘do not eat’ order on all non-game fish due to dioxin. The Shenandoah River is marked with PCBs and mercury and carry the ban for carp and channel catfish over 17 inches. For smaller streams there are others listed by the Department of Health and Human Resources. Go to www.wvdhhr.org/fish or call 304-558-2981 for details.

To see the entire public health advisory in Pennsylvania, visit the Department of Health website at www.health.state.pa.us or call 717-787-1708. In Ohio, contact the EPA Division of Surface Water at www.epa.state.oh.us or call 614-644-2160 or the Ohio Department of Health at 800-755-4769.
In West Virginia’s DHHR report, it lists the benefits of eating fish: “Eating properly prepared and cooked fish and shellfish is widely recognized as an integral part of a healthy, balanced diet. Fish is a nutritional source of proteins. It is low in saturated fats, cholesterol, and sodium, and contains essential nutrients that play a major role in reducing the risk of heart attacks and strokes.”