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Home > Take Me Fishing Blog > August 2018 > Fish Contamination Awareness: 4 health safety tips
Properly prepared, a fillet of fish is delicious and good for you. However, as with just about every other food, there are some health risks too. For example, recalls and alerts for possible bacteria such as salmonella and E. coli contamination in meats and even fruits and vegetables are too common. Fish contamination is something we don’t like to think about but there are some things we can do to minimize health risks.
First, read your state fishing regulations regarding any public health advisories about eating fish. Although not the complete resource on the matter, this is a great place to start educating yourself. For example, mercury contamination in fish is a concern in both saltwater and freshwater. According to the fish consumption advisory in the Pennsylvania Fishing Regulations Summary , mercury is an “unavoidable chemical contaminant” but usually found in a low level. Exposure to some contaminants such as PCBs can be lessened if the fish is cleaned to remove skin and fatty areas. Unfortunately, this does not help in the case of mercury in fish.
When you renew your fishing license, pick up fishing regulations and learn what you can about any fish contamination so you can make an educated decision for you and your family. It looks like mercury contamination in fish can happen to many species. I still eat fish but, as with every other food, moderation is important.
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Andy is an outdoor writer (http://www.justkeepreeling.com/) and stressed-out Dad has contributed over 380 blogs to takemefishing.org since 2011. Born in Florida, but raised on banks of Oklahoma farm ponds, he now chases pike, smallmouth bass, and steelhead in Pennsylvania. After earning a B.S. in Zoology from OSU, he worked in fish hatcheries and as a fisheries research technician at OSU, Iowa State, and Michigan State.
The largemouth bass is the most popular freshwater game fish in the U.S. Learn more about how you can identify a largemouth bass, where to catch it and what bait and lures to use.
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