Shark fins and shark meat contain high levels of poisonous mercury.

Mercury is a dangerous poison to humans that enters the oceans from pollution. Fish absorb mercury and it accumulates in their bodies. As fish eat other fish, the mercury accumulates and concentrates further up the food chain. This process is called Biomagnification.

Sharks have more mercury than other fish because they are at the top of the food chain, can live for 50 years or more, eat many fish during that lifetime, and continue to store mercury in their bodies during that time. When we eat shark fin soup, a lifetime's accumulation of mercury is absorbed into our body.

  Large predators, like sharks, can have concentrations of mercury that are 10,000 times higher than their surrounding waters. Mercury in fish cannot be trimmed off or destroyed by cooking.

The legal limit for consumption of methyl-mercury, set by the United States Environmental Protection Agency, is 0.1 microgram per kilogram of body weight. Studies have shown shark meat contains as much as 1,400 micrograms of methyl-mercury in one kilogram. A person weighing 155 lbs would therefore get 50 times the legal amount in one single portion of shark steak.

Studies conducted by Hong Kong Baptist University and WildAid indicate ¼ of shark fins analyzed had mercury levels higher than the highest allowable standards set by the World Health Organization for fishery products.

Sharks fins contain other poisons, as well.

Shark fins bought in Haikou were found to be so contaminated with arsenic that they exceeded China’s national guidelines for marine products by 13 to 32 times. The way shark fins and shark fin soup is prepared can result in each guest at a banquet ingesting over a hundred times the daily recommended intake of these poisons!

The danger of Mercury

There is no accepted scientific evidence that shark fin provides any medicinal or health benefit. In contrast, studies show that shark contains among the highest levels of toxic mercury found in any fish. And, that mercury can be very hazardous to our health.

Mercury is a dangerous neurotoxin to humans, and is especially harmful to children and pregnant women.  Medical risks associated with mercury consumption include:

• Damage to the developing brain of the fetus resulting in mental disabilities.
• Interference with a child’s brain development (even at low doses).
• Increased incidence of autism in children exposed to mercury.
• Interference with blood pressure regulation in adults.
• Increased risk of heart disease.
• Neurological problems including memory loss and chronic fatigue.
• Low sperm count, erectile dysfunction and even sterility in men.

Many health organizations warn pregnant women not to eat shark while pregnant or if they plan to become pregnant. A recent study in New York City found that one in four Asian born women had dangerously high levels of mercury in their blood.