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Generally, the level and quality of information on mercury and health appearing in most public literature and media reports is based on misunderstanding and misleading interpretations of the science. As one example, in the context of mercury-related sciences, the Chicago Tribune (CT) series “The Mercury Menace” from late 2005 was based on questionable or mistaken presumptions. That is to say, it is so permeated with stunning inaccuracies and important omissions that it should not be relied on in any policymaking arena. The entire series and follow-up articles seem largely drawn from previously published materials in the non-science literature, largely without attribution. For example, the story concerning the reputed “poisoning” of little Sophie Chabon and her “treatment” by Dr. Jane Hightower earlier appeared in the San Francisco Chronicle. Critical comments about the FDA appear drawn from various “mercury-activist” web sites. Tragically, regarding public health, the Tribune series itself and the information upon which it is based may do more harm than good. The series could cause people to avoid fish consumption altogether, thereby missing out on the significant nutritional benefits fish consumption provides – especially for women and their babies. In this regard, we direct attention to a paper by Sandy Szwarc, When Mercury Fears Harm, found at (http://ff.org/centers/csspp/pdf/szwarc_072006.pdf). It examines the risks of mercury alarmism: “Fears about mercury are directed at our most vulnerable — pregnant women, babies and young children — but the evidence indicates they are most harmed by fears, endangering the neurological development of babies and young children and increasing risks for pregnancy complications and preterm deliveries.” By this, she means that discouragement of fish consumption also “eliminates the health benefits from eating fish, which help reduce those very same fear-induced health concerns among adults and growing children.” More broadly, even a cursory examination of the evolving peer-reviewed literature reveals a plethora of significant health benefits that could result from intake of omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids, vitamin E, selenium, protein, iron, zinc, calcium and other essential nutrients available in a fish-rich diet. Each reader of the Tribune series is getting older every day. Many encounter the difficult impacts of old age, either in themselves or in friends and family members. Emerging literature indicates that increased fish consumption is associated with more positive outcomes for a variety of diseases often associated with old age, including cardiovascular disease, type II diabetes, and even Alzheimer’s – to name only a few (see Sec. 1). Overall, the Tribune series doesn’t report the critical and balanced information required for either public or personal informed decision-making. This paper not only represents a quest for the truth and a defense of science, but seeks to improve the basis for public policy decision-making and the improved health and well-being of all people, especially women and all our children. We agree with the observation of former Surgeon General C. Everett Koop: “Scares ultimately divert our attention from real opportunities to enhance life and longevity. What an incredible waste of time, resources, and human potential.” In the face of an expansive and robust body of scientific literature and the growing potential for misinformation doing great harm to public health, the continued purveyance of unwarranted mercury alarmism is highly troubling. Willful ignorance is no longer an excuse. Robert Ferguson
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