New recommendations on fish consumption in Illinois.
Do with as you wish but I would highly recommend that you at least limit your children's consumption since their neurological development is much more likely to be affected.
its a nasty world where we gotta limit our intake because of our own doing,
but can still safely enjoy your catch
some ways to minimize exposure 9 Tips on Eating Your Catch
To reduce exposures to mercury, avoid or eat less largemouth and smallmouth bass, northern pike, pickerel, walleye and larger yellow perch (for example, longer than 10 inches) because these fish tend to have higher mercury levels, particularly in the Adirondack and Catskill regions.
To reduce exposures to PCBs, dioxin, mirex, DDT, chlordane and dieldrin, avoid or eat less American eel, bluefish, carp, lake trout, salmon (Chinook, Coho), striped bass, weakfish, white and channel catfish, and white perch because these fish tend to have higher levels of these contaminants.
PCBs, dioxin, mirex, DDT, chlordane and dieldrin are found at higher levels in the fat of fish. You can reduce the amount of these contaminants in a fish meal by properly trimming, skinning and cooking your catch. Remove the skin and trim all the fat from the belly flap, the line along the sides, and the fat along the back and under the skin (see diagram on the right). Cooking or soaking fish cannot eliminate the contaminants, but heat from cooking melts some of the fat in fish and allows some of the contaminated fat to drip away. Broil, grill or bake the trimmed, skinned fish on a rack so that the fat drips away. Do not use drippings to prepare sauces or gravies. These precautions will not reduce the amount of mercury or other metals. Mercury is distributed throughout a fish's muscle tissue (the part you eat), rather than in the fat and skin. The only way to reduce mercury intake is to eat less contaminated fish.
Choose freshwater sportfish from waterbodies for which there is no specific advice.
Space out your fish meals so you don't get too much exposure to one or more chemicals at any given time. This is particularly important for women and young children.
When deciding which sportfish to eat, choose smaller fish within a species since they may have lower contaminant levels. Older (larger) fish from the same species may be more contaminated than smaller fish because they have had more time to accumulate contaminants in their bodies. (But make sure to follow NYS DEC regulations about fish length).
Do not eat the soft "green stuff" (mustard, tomalley, liver or hepato-pancreas) found in the body section of crab and lobster. This tissue can contain high levels of chemical contaminants, including PCBs, dioxin and heavy metals.
Maintain good sanitary practices to reduce the chance of getting sick from bacteria, viruses or parasites that may be in or on fish. Harvest fish fresh and keep them cool. Wear gloves when skinning and trimming. Cook fish and shellfish thoroughly before eating.
Anglers who want to enjoy the fun of fishing but who wish to eliminate the potential risks associated with eating contaminated sportfish may want to consider "catch and release" fishing. Refer to the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYS DEC) New York State Fishing Regulations Guide for suggestions on catch and release fishing techniques or go to the NYS DEC website at http://www.dec.ny.gov/outdoor/7917.html
also brief list of fish with low to high mercury levels
HIGH MERCURY
Eat three servings or less per month:
Bluefish
Grouper*
Mackerel (Spanish, Gulf)
Sea Bass (Chilean)*
Tuna (Canned Albacore)
Tuna (Yellowfin)*
Note that the "carp" in these advisories is common carp, not bighead and silver carp, which are very different in their life histories and are typically not bottom feeders, so they tend to be much lower in certain types of contaminants than common carp. They really need to do separate analyses on bighead and silver carp. Large bighead carp sometimes hit the most conservative mercury advisory levels for women of reproductive years and for children, but in my experience silver carp has not. Depending where you capture the fish, any fish can have high levels of contaminants, though.
Oh, and most of the fat in silver and bighead carp is in the belly meat, viscera, and skin, which few North Americans are likely to eat. Mercury does not concentrate in fat, but most of the other contaminants of concern here do. If you cut that part off, you'll lower your contaminant intake tremendously. And frankly, that belly meat is yucko anyway, so no great loss. The rest of the filet is great.
__________________ http://www.illinoisbowfishers.com
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An unarmed man can only flee from Evil, and Evil is not overcome by fleeing from it.
- Colonel Jeff Cooper
New fish consumption recommendations in IL
