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Medical Author:

Charles Patrick Davis, MD, PhD

Charles Patrick Davis, MD, PhD

Dr. Charles "Pat" Davis, MD, PhD, is a board certified Emergency Medicine doctor who currently practices as a consultant and staff member for hospitals. He has a PhD in Microbiology (UT at Austin), and the MD (Univ. Texas Medical Branch, Galveston). He is a Clinical Professor (retired) in the Division of Emergency Medicine, UT Health Science Center at San Antonio, and has been the Chief of Emergency Medicine at UT Medical Branch and at UTHSCSA with over 250 publications.

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Medical Editor:

William C. Shiel Jr., MD, FACP, FACR

William C. Shiel Jr., MD, FACP, FACR

Dr. Shiel received a Bachelor of Science degree with honors from the University of Notre Dame. There he was involved in research in radiation biology and received the Huisking Scholarship. After graduating from St. Louis University School of Medicine, he completed his Internal Medicine residency and Rheumatology fellowship at the University of California, Irvine. He is board-certified in Internal Medicine and Rheumatology.

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Prevention of mercury poisoning is difficult if the source of the mercury is unknown. Consequently, prevention of mercury poisoning begins with identifying the potential or known sources and stopping production or isolating the toxin so none will come in contact with people. These situations are usually found in industrial or environmental mercury sources and may require both industrial and governmental assistance to design ways to prevent exposure to forms of mercury.

At home, there are a few mercury- containing items (for example, thermometers, medical devices, some disinfectants, fluorescent light bulbs) that potentially can be the source of mercury poisoning. People are advised to read the labels on products to see if they contain mercury, have warning labels about potential toxicity, or have directions about how to dispose of a broken or non-useable product. The EPA has a detailed set of instructions about what to do and what not to do if mercury is spilled or a fluorescent bulb breaks in the home. The instructions also tell how to dispose of mercury containing products.

People are also concerned about mercury found in dental amalgam fillings. However, the CDC has stated there is no good evidence that the small amount of mercury in amalgam fillings causes harm and that removing amalgam fillings does not benefit people. However, there are several other types of dental filling material that can be used so individuals are urged to discuss choices for dental fillings with their dentist.

Fish and shellfish are usually considered to be part of a healthy diet, but almost all contain traces of methylmercury. To prevent people from getting toxic methylmercury levels from eating seafood the FDA made these recommendations:

1. Do not eat shark, swordfish, king mackerel, or tilefish because they contain high levels of mercury.
   
   
2. Eat up to 12 ounces (two average meals) a week of a variety of fish and shellfish that are lower in mercury.
   
   

• Five of the most commonly eaten fish that are low in mercury are shrimp, canned light tuna, salmon, pollock, and catfish.
  
  
• Another commonly eaten fish, albacore ("white") tuna has more mercury than canned light tuna. So, when choosing your two meals of fish and shellfish, you may eat up to 6 ounces (one average meal) of albacore tuna per week.
  
  

3. Check local advisories about the safety of fish caught by family and friends in your local lakes, rivers, and coastal areas. If no advice is available, eat up to 6 ounces (one average meal) per week of fish you catch from local waters, but don't consume any other fish during that week.

Women who are trying to become pregnant, who are pregnant or are breastfeeding should be especially careful about following these suggestions as the fetus, neonate and infant brain and spinal cord seems especially sensitive to all forms of mercury poisoning.

Another source of concern by people is the use of thimerosal, a mercury-containing preservative used in vaccine preparations. Except for some influenza vaccines, it is not being used in most vaccines. However, the amount of mercury in thimerosal is very low and the CDC recommended in 2008 that current flu vaccines contain so little, they are safe to use in pregnant women and children.

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