It used to be that eating seafood and fish regularly was a pretty safe nutritional bet. Fish was packed with protein, healthy monounsaturated fats, omega-3 fatty acids, all those good things (read more about benefits of fish oil).
Unfortunately, due to our continued poisoning of the environment and the Fukushima power plant meltdown, many fish are now loaded with unsafe levels of mercury and radiation.All fish, every single fish on this planet, have some level of mercury; however, some have much higher levels than others.
Take a look at our list of the top 15 most contaminated fish on the market today. Avoid eating these or eat them in very small quantities, unless you are an expectant mother, in which case, avoid these fish entirely. However, we will list the best fish to eat at the end of this article, too, so keep reading!.
12Atlantic Cod
It gets confusing sometimes, whether to eat fish from the Pacific or the Atlantic, but it really does make a difference. Everyone feels badly about adding this to the “do not eat” list, because New England fishermen rely on this fish for their economic livelihood, but besides being contaminated with mercury, the chronic mismanagement of this fish by the National Fisheries Services has placed this fish just one step above making the endangered species list. Until this fish species recovers its numbers, eat Pacific cod, which is still extremely plentiful and not nearly as contaminated.
If you love good old fashioned fish and chips (and almost all of these recipes use cod) then opt for Pacific cod. Tastes the same and is a better healthy choice. If you regularly use frozen fish sticks or fish fillets, read the label and choose Pacific cod until the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s Red List of Threatened Species says that Atlantic cod is safe to consume once more.
