Oh no, not tuna!

time for a little less maguro...

For a few years now, it's been reported that tuna is one of the fish that contains higher levels of mercury. Sushi lovers have pretty much been in denial, but now it's harder to avoid with a new study reported in an L.A. Times article about tests at five top sushi bars carried out by Gotmercury.org. If you tend to eat a lot of tuna and this worries you, it's really time to get more adventurous at sushi bars and seafood restaurants and order more sardines, shrimp, salmon, clams, crab, squid, black cod, etc. If you like canned tuna, be sure to buy light tuna, not white/albacore, which is much higher in mercury.

Here's a handy list of sushi names I borrowed from the Natural Resources Defense Council:

HIGHEST MERCURY-- Avoid Kajiki (swordfish) Saba (mackerel)

HIGH MERCURY-- Eat no more than three 6-ounce servings per month:

Ahi (yellowfin tuna) Buri (adult yellowtail) Hamachi (young yellowtail) Inada (very young yellowtail) Kanpachi (very young yellowtail) Katsuo (bonito) Maguro (bigeye, bluefin or yellowfin tuna) Makjiki (blue marlin) Masu (trout) Meji (young bigeye, bluefin or yellowfin tuna)Shiro (albacore tuna) Toro (bigeye, bluefin or yellowfin tuna)
LOWER MERCURY-- Eat no more than six 6-ounce servings per month:

Kani (crab) Seigo (young sea bass) Suzuki (sea bass)

LOWEST MERCURY--Enjoy these fish:

Aji (horse mackerel) Akagai (ark shell) Anago (conger eel) Aoyagi (round clam) Awabi (abalone)Ayu (sweetfish) Ebi (shrimp) Hamaguri (clam) Hamo (pike conger; sea eel) Hatahata (sandfish)Himo (ark shell) Hokkigai (surf clam) Hotategai (scallop) Ika (squid) Ikura (salmon roe)Kaibashira (shellfish) Kaiware (daikon-radish sprouts) Karei (flatfish) Kohada (gizzard shad)Masago (smelt egg) Mirugai (surf clam) Nori-tama (egg) Sake (salmon) Sawara (spanish mackerel) Sayori (halfbeak) Shako (mantis shrimp) Tai (sea bream) Tairagai (razor-shell clam)Tako (octopus) Tamago (egg) Tobikko (flying fish egg) Torigai (cockle) Tsubugai (shellfish)Unagi (freshwater eel) Uni (sea urchin roe)