Pregnant women warned against eating game meat

Pregnant women and young children should not regularly eat game meat, a government agency warned.

A report by the Food Standards Agency said that eating lead-shot game meat on a regular basis can expose everyone to "potentially harmful levels of lead," but some groups are more at risk than others. Dr Alison Gleadle, FSA director of food safety said: "This advice is targeted specifically at the small number of people who eat lead-shot game on a frequent basis. "To minimise the risk of lead intake, people who frequently eat lead-shot game, particularly small game, should cut down their consumption.

"This advice is especially important for vulnerable groups such as toddlers and children, pregnant women and women trying for a baby, as exposure to lead can harm the developing brain and nervous system." Lead accumulation in the body can also lead to heart and kidney problems in adults.

Smaller game such as birds, tend to have higher levels of lead remaining in them than is found in larger game such as venison. An adult eating a 100g portion of lead-shot game bird meat per week could increase their lead exposure by around four times, the agency said. Cooking game with acidic ingredients, such as wine, vinegar or tomatoes, can also cause the lead to dissolve and make it easier for the human body to absorb.

However, the agency also added that eating a 120g portion of lead-shot venison or other large game per week was "less of a concern" for adults and monthly consumption of larger game would have little effect on a person’s overall exposure to lead from food. The British Association for Shooting and Conservation (BASC) said fears of lead contamination of game "should not be exaggerated," and that "pound-for-pound, there is more lead in chocolate than game."

Christopher Graffius, BASC head of communications said: "There is lead in all food stuffs and we should see the purported risk of lead in game meat in a sensible perspective. There is no evidence of harm to those of us who eat game less than once every week. Compared with other meats wild game is low in fats and entirely natural, representing a healthy option to intensively reared products."

Yahoo Lifestyle

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