Fukushima Tuna Off California

I love tuna. Tuna melt sandwiches, tuna straight from the can. But, it has to be albacore, white tuna. I think this food is the best in terms of cost, protein, low calories and omega content, but sadly, one now has to cautious, but how?

How in the world will a consumer know that their Starkist brand is low in mercury and has not been tainted by cesium-137 or 134 from Japan's Fukushima nuclear disaster?

Bluefin and Yellowfin tuna migrate from Japan, across the Pacific and hang out fom Mexico's Baja Peninsula to anywhere off the California coast for most of their lives. They are caught and put in a can for us to eat. Researchers have found elevated levels of cesium 137 and 134 in the muscle tissue of both types of tuna. The levels are as much as five times the normal. Prior to the disaster, cesium was not found in Japan's water, now it is. In 2008, cesium was not found in any of the tuna caught, now it is.

This was discovered off the coast of San Diego in 2011. Researchers caught 15 species and tested them, it was five months after Japan's nuclear disaster. Perhaps, these tuna were in the water at the wrong time when Japan's water was 10,000 times the normal radioactivity and as young fish, the cesium was ingested. Now researchers are concerned about other types of sealife that humans consume, although, scientists claim the cesium levels are of no danger to ones health (well, assuming you do not eat it!).

So, if you love tuna, try to find out where the tuna is caught. Avoid seafood products stating, "Product of Japan". Reduce tuna consumption as you want.