Scientists, MDs & NGOs Join 21 U.S. Senators in Urging Obama to Update Advisory on Mercury in Fish

WASHINGTON, Aug. 19, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Following an August 6th letter from 21 US Senators¹, President Obama was urged to expedite release of an updated consumer advisory on methylmercury in a August 15 letter² from scientists, MDs and nongovernmental organizations. According to the letter, mercury is a dangerous neurotoxin that builds up in the aquatic food chain and poses an increased risk to developing fetuses and children's brains, causing permanent learning disabilities.

The current advisory, issued by EPA and FDA in March 2004, was developed in 2003 based on studies published in the 1990s, and is now out of date and insufficiently protective of public health. Research carried out in the past decade has both clarified the beneficial nutritional effects of fish consumption during pregnancy and found adverse effects of prenatal methylmercury exposure at very low doses, at least an order of magnitude below exposures known to be harmful when the current advisory was written.

"Recent scientific findings show health effects occurring below the level considered "safe" several years ago," said Michael Bender, director of the Mercury Policy Project and lead author of the letter.  "This long-awaited policy update urgently needs to be sent out for comment to ensure that it's in line with the latest science.   We urge the President to instruct Federal agencies to publish the draft updated advisory without delay."

Bender said that their letter echoed the frustrations of the Senators earlier letter, which urged Obama to update the mercury advisory "swiftly":

"This is the third time a wide bipartisan group of Senators has written to you requesting your help removing roadblocks to finalizing the FDA advice to pregnant women on seafood consumption.  Pregnant women, physicians and medical professionals, however, are still waiting despite numerous commitments in 2011, 2012 and 2013 to finalize the FDA advisory."

An earlier letter³ was sent by a similar group to HHS Secretary Sebelius in April, noting that the updated advisory was signed off on by FDA and EPA last fall, but approval to publish it has clearly stalled within HHS.   Unfortunately, the June 14^th response back from FDA appeared to indicate that the rule was still tied up:  "… it is not possible to provide a guarantee that it will be completed by any specific date." 

¹ http://www.landrieu.senate.gov/files/documents/2013_08_06_Letter_FDA_Seafood_Advisory_Pregnant_Women.pdf

² http://mercurypolicy.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/08/letter_to_president_obama_15_aug_2013.pdf

³ http://in.reuters.com/article/2013/05/15/us-seafood-mercury-idINBRE94E1DP20130515

SOURCE Mercury Policy Project