Human biomonitoring to optimize fish consumption advice: reducing uncertainty when evaluating benefits and risks

Area of Science:

• Environmental Health
• Nutritional Science
• Public Health Policy

Background:

• Current fish consumption advisories often focus solely on contaminant exposure risks.
• This approach can lead to overly restrictive advice, discouraging fish consumption even when unwarranted.
• Generic advisories may have negative public health consequences due to reduced intake of beneficial nutrients and substitution with less healthy foods.

Purpose of the Study:

• To advocate for a revised approach to fish consumption advisories.
• To highlight the need to incorporate the health benefits of fish consumption alongside contaminant risk assessments.
• To emphasize the potential for personalized advisories based on individual exposure and health factors.

Main Methods:

• The study reviews current practices in national fish consumption advisories.
• It discusses advancements in analytical chemistry for assessing environmental contaminant exposure.
• It considers the public health implications of dietary choices, particularly in light of nutritionally linked diseases.

Main Results:

• Solely risk-based advisories are overly restrictive and can be detrimental to public health.
• Technological advances allow for more precise assessment of individual contaminant exposures.
• Personalized advisories can be developed by evaluating contaminant levels and individual health risk factors.

Conclusions:

• Fish consumption advisories need to consider both contaminant risks and nutritional benefits.
• Generic, restrictive advisories are ill-advised given the epidemic of diet-related diseases.
• Targeted, individualized advisories represent a more effective public health strategy for fish consumption.