Why shouldn't we eat fish?

Question

My mum is alright with me not eating other animals, but she wont let me drop fish off my menu, she thinks it's 'necessary in a healthy diet'.

Does anyone have a good list, maybe a link to a website or something, with information as to why we shouldn't eat fish? I'd like a whole range of information, stuff about how smart they are, about how cruel-ly they are farmed, how damaging fishing can be to the environment, how we can get the nutrition of fish in other foods ... anything.

I've tried searching google for it, but it's hard to figure out the right search words, I haven't really been able to come up with anything myself.

Answer 1

I'll just give you a bunch of links...
General fish consumption info: http://www.factoryfarming.com/fish_more.htm
Fish/health: http://www.nealhendrickson.com/mcdougall/030200pufishisnothealthfood.htm
http://www.vrg.org/journal/vj2003issue2/vj2003issue2update.htm
http://www.vrg.org/journal/vj2001sep/2001sepomega3.htm
http://www.vegsoc.org/info/omega3.html
Overfishing:
http://www.un.org/events/tenstories_2006/story.asp?storyID=800
http://www.ivu.org/congress/2002/texts/david2.html (scroll down to "overfishing")

Hope that helped. And good luck :]

Answer 2

I agree with the pollution thing. My husband and I used to vacation at a private resort town on Lake Erie, OH during the July 4 week. This year and last year we were not able to go. Anyway, one year, I saw what looked like oil floating on top of the water (with other rubbish as well) and couldn't believe that people were fishing (and assumingly eating it, too) from that water. Even more disgusting was seeing the kids fish (and assumingy eat it) from the water.

Recently, on one of the network morning programs, I saw a segment on either fish and the different types, or food advice on what a pregnant woman should be eating. It looked as though the doctor, whom the host interviewed, was pregnant. She commented that if a pregnant woman eats fish then it should only be two servings a week to avoid mercury. Okay. I'll just stick to my Smart Balance spread (which I think is vegan, and I've read the ingredients a few times) which is fortified with omega-3 and with nuts, etc. and avoid the pollution. I've already passed on enough junk to my baby (unintentionally, of course) without doing so intentionally.

To me, fish is meat and not edible, for the reasons already stated.

Answer 3

That actually sounds like exactly my dilemma, my mother is dead against my giving up fish, partly for the supposed health benefits, and partly because I am Malayalee (from a coastal state in South India renowned for their fish and seafood). Frankly I think I could without too much trouble, except for my sushi addiction, which is something I'll have to address.

She claims there are wide-health benefits (protein, things that are good for skin, etc.), but given that nowadays, fish are loaded with mercury and other heavy metals (especially those higher in the food chain) I wonder if it will do us more harm than good. The mantra people seem to be chanting nowadays, that justifies eating fish, is "omega-3 fatty acids." Of course, flaxseed oil/flaxseed carries just as much, if not more.

I would think PETA's website has a lot, I vaguely remember that they have a section devoted to the ills of eating fish (as well as other animals). Hope that helps.

Answer 4

When it comes down to it, your mom can't force you to eat something. She can get angry at you for taking it out of your diet, but it's still your choice whether you want to do that or not.

Fish are not "only marginally more intelligent than rocks". God, ex-vegans are annoying... Do us a favor and leave our section of Y!A? Thanks.

http://www.aquahobby.com/articles/e_intelligence.php

My reasons for not eating fish are not because of how they are farmed or how it damages the environment, but simply because it is wrong to eat another sentient being (yes, fish are sentient). However, fishing is definitely damaging the environment and messing up the ecosystem. Even if you don't believe that it's wrong to catch and eat fish, dolphins and sea turtles often get caught in the nets with them.

From a health standpoint, fish is filled with mercury and other pollutants from the ocean. Omega-3's are really the only thing that fish has that's relatively hard to find... I use flaxseeds to get my Omega-3's. I think someone else already gave you a list of substitutes.

Good luck, and I hope you decide to remove fish from your diet!

Answer 5

sorry I dont know any websites, but I know that they are one of the most polluted of animals.. It's really sad... They have high levels of dangerous heavy metals, and toxins.
There might be some better farming methods for fish, but in general... no..

and most are on the endangered species list too! I heard that if we continue our cruel over-harvest of fish, soon there won't be any left, and that will seriously wreak our ecosystem. :-(

Fish are not the most developed of consciousness, but if you have ever seen a fish dye, it will make you so so sick....Blood, bones flesh, eyes, organs... not something I'd want to put in my mouth.

I saw one fish die from lack of water by some cruel fishermen, They just let it flap around in agony for such a long time :-(

I like fish, especially koi fish.. they are actually pretty smart. They liked looking at me when I would come to see them. I liked giving them bread. I'd never want to eat fish

Answer 6

It comes down to choice. There is no real reason why one should not eat fish. They are only marginally smarter than rocks. You can choose to eat line-caught fish that do not contribute to pollution or disease. Some of the nutrition in fish simply cannot be found from non-animal sources (though your body will make do without). Simply put, in moderation, fish is quite good for you.

But you choose not to eat fish, and that should be reason enough for your mum to back off. Of course, you should also not expect her to put herself out simply to cater to your choice of diets. Be willing to do your own cooking in order to reach a balanced diet.

I would approach it like, "I know that fish is good for me, but I also know that I can have a perfectly healthy lifestyle without fish or meat. I don't want to create more work for you, so I will prep some food myself to ensure I'm getting a healthy diet. Why not let me try eating my way for a while and we can take another look at my health in a month or so, okay?"

You're not denying the healthy benefits of fish, but you're also exercising your ability to choose a different path. Periodic health checks are important, especially if you go vegan, so you can modify your diet to keep yourself healthy and energized.

Answer 7

Fish is climbing the ladder of popularity these days because of the benefits of the newly found good fat known as Omega 3. This fat necessary for the brain and to lower bad cholesterol and which acts as a soluble fiber is absorbed efficiently from fish. But the best plant based source recently discovered are walnuts and flaxseed. So you can substitute flaxseed and walnut for fish. They too contain as much Omega 3. For instance, one spoonful of flaxseed contain 65% of our daily allowance. Eat ground flaxseed sprinkled on your cereal. Moreover, fish is becoming pretty dangerous to eat nowadays. With excessive water pollution, they absorb a lot of chemicals which are life threatening. In farms, they are doped and made big with more chemicals. So go veg!

Answer 8

ITs EASy to replace FISH!!

one tablespoon of ground flaxseeds sprinkled on your rice or soup or popcorn is PACKED in omega 3 fatty acids!!

(it's a good eggreplacer too, if you blend it in a blender with water you'll see why, when it becomes guey!)

PLUS
Fish are so dangerous to eat now a days. They are getting more and more poluted and have toxins in them from the junk they dump in the ocean.

[I just had to say that in an answer I read previously, you said you crave eating meat just as much as you crave poo.........I swear, when I got to that part I had to LOL, oh man....hehe....I hope you don't mind me using that one too!]

Answer 9

Yes my father worked as a fisherman for a living for many years. So personal experience here. Fish not only eat other fish. They will eat just about anything. Although they do have their preferences.

Answer 10

Here are some points and websites that might help you.

Seafood is the number one cause of food poisoning in the US. Fish live in water that is so polluted, you would never dream of drinking it. But you’re ingesting this toxic brew—bacteria, contaminants, heavy metals and all—every time you eat fish.

Sea animals such as turtles, dolphins, seals and birds are the unintended target of the fishing industry are killed by thousands in fishing nets. Millions and millions of tons of bycatch are caught and are considered waste.

Chinook salmon, for example, derives 55 percent of its calories from fat, and some species are higher in cholesterol than steak. Only part of the fat in fish is omega-3; much of the remaining fat is saturated.

Australian crimson spotted rainbow fish, which learned to escape from a net in their tank, remembered how they did it 11 months later. This is equivalent to a human recalling a lesson learned 40 years ago.

Many marine ecologists think that the biggest single threat to marine ecosystems today is overfishing. Our appetite for fish is exceeding the oceans' ecological limits with devastating impacts on marine ecosystems. Scientists are warning that overfishing results in profound changes in our oceans, perhaps changing them forever.

http://www.fishinghurts.com/

http://www.pcrm.org/search/?query_string=fish&Go.x=0&Go.y=0

http://oceans.greenpeace.org/en/our-oceans

Hope this helps!