Meno, I’m with you. And I imagine a lot of others too, or the stores would not bother putting things on sale.
Back to tuna:
When eating fish, one has to weigh the health benefits versus the risk of mercury contamination. There are fish with low mercury levels that give all the health benefits- for example salmon. Tuna is not the only fish in the sea.
While pregnant women may be a minority here on YW, there are probably many women of child-bearing age (it takes a long time for the body to get rid of mercury, so it’s not only relevant to pregnancy itself), men who are married or will be married to such women, and people who have kids/grandkids that they are preparing food for, so I think this warning is very appropriate.
Here’s some info I found on Google:
“These recommendations are based on EPA guidance and estimates of mercury in the most popular canned tunas:
Canned white, or albacore (0.32 parts per million of mercury). Children under six can eat up to one 3-ounce portion a month; children from 6–12, two 4.5-ounce portions a month. Adults, including pregnant women, can safely eat it up to three times a month (women, 6-ounce portions; men, 8-ounce portions).
Canned light — the safer choice (0.12 parts per million of mercury). Children under six can eat up to three 3-ounce portions per month. Older children and adults can safely eat it once a week. But look out for “gourmet” or “tonno” labels. They are made with bigger yellowfin tuna and can contain mercury levels comparable to canned white.”
Note that the tuna most often used in Sushi has the highest mercury levels:
“*An average 5-ounce serving (1 can) of light tuna contains 18.11 micrograms of mercury.
*An average 5-ounce serving (1 can) of albacore tuna contains 49.53 micrograms of mercury.
*An average 5-ounce serving of tuna steak or tuna sushi could contain up to 97.49 micrograms.”