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Advice about Eating Fish

For Those Who Might Become or Are Pregnant or Breastfeeding and Children Ages 1 - 11 Years

Advice about Eating Fish: Mom feeding her toddler fish

 

FDA and EPA have issued advice regarding eating fish‡.

This advice can help those who might become or are pregnant or breastfeeding as well as parents and caregivers who are feeding children make informed choices when it comes to the types of fish that are nutritious and safe to eat. This advice supports the recommendations of the Dietary Guidelines for Americans.

The advice features a chart that makes it easy to choose dozens of healthy and safe options and includes information about the nutritional value of fish. A set of frequently asked questions & answers provides more information on how to use the chart and additional tips for eating fish.

‡This advice refers to fish and shellfish collectively as “fish.”

Read the full advice below or download in PDF. 

This chart can help you choose which fish to eat, and how often to eat them, based on their mercury levels.

Advice About Eating Fish - Chart Thumbnail

Enlarge in PDF

Supporting Materials | Education Resources for Consumers and Educators

En español and Additional Translations

Fish provide key nutrients that support a child’s brain development

Fish provide key nutrients that support a child’s brain development.

Learn which nutrients in fish support child development

Eating fish can provide other health benefits too

Eating fish can provide other health benefits too.

Learn more about health benefits                                                                                   

The Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommends eating fish as part of a healthy eating pattern

The Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommends eating fish as part of a healthy eating pattern.

Learn more about Dietary Guidelines and fish

Choose a variety of fish that are lower in mercury.

Choose a variety of fish that are lower in mercury.

Learn which fish are lower in mercury

Fish provide key nutrients that support a child’s brain development

Fish provide key nutrients that support a child’s brain development.

Fish are part of a healthy eating pattern and provide key nutrients during pregnancy, breastfeeding, and/or early childhood to support a child’s brain development:

  • Omega-3 (called DHA and EPA) and omega-6 fats
  • Iron
  • Iodine (during pregnancy)
  • Choline

Choline also supports development of the baby’s spinal cord. Fish provide iron and zinc to support children’s immune systems. Fish are a source of other nutrients like protein, vitamin B12, vitamin D, and selenium too.

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Eating fish can provide other health benefits too

Eating fish can provide other health benefits too.

Fish intake during pregnancy is recommended because moderate scientific evidence shows it can help your baby’s cognitive development.

Strong evidence shows that eating fish, as part of a healthy eating pattern, may have heart health benefits.

A healthy eating pattern consists of choices across all food groups (vegetables, fruits, grains, dairy, and protein foods, which includes fish), eaten in recommended amounts, and within calorie needs. Healthy eating patterns include foods that provide vitamins, minerals, and other health-promoting components and have no or little added sugars, saturated fat, and sodium.

Healthy eating patterns that include fish may have other benefits too. Moderate scientific evidence shows that eating patterns relatively higher in fish but also in other foods, including vegetables, fruits, legumes, whole grains, low- or non-fat dairy, lean meats and poultry, nuts, and unsaturated vegetable oils, and lower in red and processed meats, sugar-sweetened foods and beverages, and refined grains are associated with:

  • Promotion of bone health – decreases the risk for hip fractures*
  • Decreases in the risk of becoming overweight or obese*
  • Decreases in the risk for colon and rectal cancers*
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The Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommends eating fish as part of a healthy eating pattern

The Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommends eating fish as part of a healthy eating pattern.

The Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommends:

  • At least 8 ounces of seafood (less for children§) per week based on a 2,000 calorie diet.
  • Those who are pregnant or breastfeeding consume between 8 and 12 ounces per week of a variety of seafood from choices that are lower in mercury.
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Choose a variety of fish that are lower in mercury.

Choose a variety of fish that are lower in mercury.

While it is important to limit mercury in the diets of those who are pregnant or breastfeeding and children, many types of fish are both nutritious and lower in mercury.  

This chart can help you choose which fish to eat, and how often to eat them, based on their mercury levels.

What is a serving? As a guide, use the palm of your hand.

Pregnancy and breastfeeding:
1 serving is 4 ounces 
Eat 2 to 3 servings a week from the "Best Choices" list 
(OR 1 serving from the "Good Choices" list). 
  

Fish Serving Size Hand: 1 serving = 4 ounces

Childhood:
On average, a serving is about: 
1 ounce at age 1 to 3 
2 ounces at age 4 to 7 
3 ounces at age 8 to 10 
4 ounces at age 11 
Eat 2 servings a week from the “Best Choices” list. 
  

Children Silhouette

Advice About Eating Fish - Choices Table

Enlarge in PDF | View Text Version | En español

What about fish caught by family or friends? Check for fish and shellfish advisories to tell you how often you can safely eat those fish. If there is no advisory, eat only one serving and no other fish that week. Some fish caught by family and friends, such as larger carp, catfish, trout and perch, are more likely to have fish advisories due to mercury or other contaminants. 

This advice supports the recommendations of the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, which reflects current science on nutrition to improve public health. The Dietary Guidelines for Americans focuses on dietary patterns and the effects of food and nutrient characteristics on health. 

* There is moderate scientific evidence of a relationship between the eating pattern as a whole and the potential health benefit. 

§For some children, the amounts of fish in the Dietary Guidelines for Americans are higher than in this FDA/EPA advice. The Dietary Guidelines for Americans states that to consume those higher amounts, children should only be fed fish from the “Best Choices” list that are even lower in mercury – these fish are anchovies, Atlantic mackerel, catfish, clams, crab, crawfish, flounder, haddock, mullet, oysters, plaice, pollock, salmon, sardines, scallops, shad, shrimp, sole, squid, tilapia, trout, and whiting. 

Advice revised October 2021

Resources to Use FDA/EPA’s Fish Advice

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