Abstract

Author(s): Conde Puertas, Elena1; Conde Puertas, Esther2; Carreras Blesa, Carmen1

Introduction: Fish is an important source of polyunsaturated fatty acids, which are essential for infant neurodevelopment. Nevertheless, the contamination of some species with methylmercury may act in opposite sense.

Objective: To determine fish intake in pregnant population, as well as consumption of species restricted by international organisations because of their content in methylmercury, and to gather information about health education that women receive regarding fish intake recommendations and its possible risks.

Materials and méthods: A cross-sectional study about nutritional evaluation of seafood intake was carried out in a sample of 56 pregnant women. Fish intake was assessed using a semiquantitative food frequency questionnaire. In addition, the meeting of the recommendations for fish consumption was analysed.

Results: The average consumption of seafood was 101g/day, with a main frequency of 5,53 servings/week. 91% of the women met the recommendations given by the SECN. However, 25% and 21, 4% of pregnant women exceed the consumption of fish species with high methylmercury content in accordance with the AESAN and European Commission recommendations, respectively.

Conclusions: Pregnant women in this study consumed fish frequently, but not always the correct kind, exceeding the consumption of oily fish high in mercury. It is important to note the lack of knowledge regarding the recommended fish consumption and its risks, due to a lack of health education.