Learn More About Your Pregnancy
Eating Seafood During Pregnancy
Q:
Is it okay to eat fish while pregnant?
Yes
Correct!
It is safe to eat fish while pregnant. In fact, you should aim to eat 8 to 12 ounces of cooked seafood each week. Seafood choices that are higher in omega-3s include salmon, herring, mussels, trout, sardines, and pollock.
No
Incorrect!
It is safe to eat fish while pregnant. In fact, you should aim to eat at least 8 and up to 12 ounces of cooked seafood each week. Seafood choices that are higher in omega-3s include salmon, herring, mussels, trout, sardines, and pollock.
Why is seafood important during pregnancy?
The nutritional value of seafood is particularly important for pregnant or breastfeeding mothers. Seafood provides important nutrients, including omega-3 fats that are good for your health and your baby’s health. Omega-3 fats from seafood are healthy fats shown to improve the development of the nervous system of an unborn child or young baby.
Eat 8 to 12 ounces of cooked seafood each week. Seafood choices that are higher in omega-3s include salmon, herring, mussels, trout, sardines, and pollock.
Mercury in seafood
Seafood may contain unhealthy chemicals, like mercury. Mercury can harm the developing nervous system in an unborn child or young baby. The level of mercury varies depending on the type of fish. Choose fish lower in mercury to get the health benefits of seafood with the least risk. Choices that are lower in mercury include salmon, flounder, tilapia, trout, pollock, and catfish. You should not eat fish high in mercury like shark, swordfish, tilefish, and King mackerel. Canned “white” tuna (albacore) is higher in mercury than the “light” variety; limit canned white tuna to less than 6 ounces per week.
Seafood from local waters
In addition to mercury, fish may contain other harmful chemicals, especially fish caught in local waters. Check local advisories to learn about the safety of fish caught in your local lakes, rivers, and coastal areas. Advisories may recommend that people limit or avoid eating some types of fish caught in certain places. If no advice is available, you may eat up to one meal (6 ounces) per week of fish from local waters, but don’t eat any other fish during that week.
