Essay On Fish Pollution

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1. INTRODUCTION
Fish and fish products are important part of a healthy diet due to many nutritional benefits where they contain as high-quality protein, low cholesterol level, having omega-3 fatty acids and minerals as well as vitamins. A well-balanced diet includes a variety of fish and shellfish can contribute to heart health and children’s growth and development.
Today, the environmental pollution is considered as one of the most serious problems in the world. The deleterious effect of the environmental pollution by heavy metals and pesticides has been considered as one of the principal research activities since 1962. The problem of residues in food has been addressed at international level through several committees sponsored by some United …show more content…

The pollution of aquatic environment with heavy metals constitutes a public health hazard during recent years. Untreated municipal and industrial wastes, together with inputs from the atmosphere, are the primary sources of heavy metal pollution of fish. Moreover, fresh water fishes are more sensitive to heavy metals than marine species specially lead (Pb), cadmium (Cd) and mercury (Hg) which are among the most dangerous heavy metals (Sorensen, 1991). Methyl mercury poisoning may be occurred among populations where fish were the major dietary stable. The signs and symptoms of chronic methyl mercury poisoning depend on the amount and duration of exposure, the age of the patient and individual sensitivity. The symptoms included incoordination, ataxia and loss of voluntary movement together with parenthesis and sensory loss in the digit, lethargy, memory loss and progressive intellectual dullness (Gohlfrank etal., 1990). Lesd is recognized as a toxic substance, which accumulates in body due to low rate of elimination (Underwood, 1977). Moreover, lead levels in edible tissues of fish over permissible limits are implicated in chronic lead toxicity results in anemia, abdominal pain, encephalopathy and renal damage. Recently, lead is considered as one of immunosuppressive agents in both animal and human (Barltrop, 1969). Cadmium is classified as a probable human carcinogen. Chronic exposure to cadmium is also associated with a wide range of other diseases, including heart disease, anemia, skeletal weakness, depressed immune systens response as well as kidney and liver disease (Codex Alimentarius,

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