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Can I eat tuna while breastfeeding?

Check Doola Scan's answer in the United States

Tuna, canned light, albacore or fresh, shows Check in Doola Scan for breastfeeding in the US, UK, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and Ireland, because its mercury depends on the kind. The limits differ by country: the FDA says 2 to 3 servings a week of canned light tuna, or 1 serving of albacore or yellowfin with no other fish that week; Health Canada limits fresh or frozen tuna to 150g a month; the NHS sets no limit on tuna while breastfeeding. Bigeye tuna shows Avoid in the US, New Zealand and Ireland.

Checked against Doola Scan's breastfeeding rules · Updated

  • Canned light tuna, usually skipjack

    CheckIn all six countries

  • Canned albacore or white tuna

    CheckIn all six countries

  • Fresh or frozen tuna steak, yellowfin or ahi

    CheckIn all six countries
Doola Scan checking a plate
What each country says

Tuna while breastfeeding: what each country says.

Each country's own breastfeeding guidance on tuna, with a link to it. Doola Scan uses your country's first.

  • United States

    Check
    • FDAFish is nutritious for baby's brain development; choosing lower-mercury fish limits mercury exposure.Source
    • FDAHigher mercury than Best Choices.Source
    • CDCCDC breastfeeding: limit to one 4 oz serving if the fish is a Good Choice (albacore).Source
    • FDACanned light tuna 2-3 servings a week; albacore/yellowfin 1 serving and no other fish that week; bigeye avoid.Source
    Bigeye tuna
    • FDAHighest mercury levels; mercury passes to baby through breast milk.Source

  • United Kingdom

    Check
    • NHSAim for at least 2 portions (about 140g each) of fish a week; no more than 2 portions of oily fish.Source
    • NHSBreastfeeding: no limit on tuna; only oily fish (max 2 a week) and shark/swordfish/marlin are limited.Source
    • NHSBreastfeeding: no limit on tuna.Source
    Bigeye tuna
    • NHSBreastfeeding: no more than 1 portion a week of shark, swordfish or marlin.Source

  • Canada

    Check
    • Health CanadaEat a variety of fish; low-mercury fish listed with no weekly amount; limits only on predatory fish.Source
    • Health CanadaCanned albacore tuna up to 300 g a week; fresh/frozen tuna etc. 150 g a month; other fish not limited.Source
    • Health CanadaSome tuna is higher in mercury; Canada sets limits while breastfeeding.Source
    Bigeye tuna
    • Health CanadaFresh/frozen tuna, shark, swordfish, marlin, orange roughy, escolar: up to 150 g a month.Source

  • Australia

    Check
    • Pregnancy, Birth and Baby (Australian Government Dept of Health)2 to 3 serves (150 g each) a week of fish not on the higher-mercury list.Source
    • Pregnancy, Birth and Baby (Australian Government Dept of Health)1 serve (150 g) a week of catfish or orange roughy and no other fish.Source
    Bigeye tuna
    • NSW Food AuthorityBreastfeeding: shark/flake, marlin, swordfish no more than one 100 g serve a fortnight, no other fish then.Source
    • Pregnancy, Birth and Baby (Australian Government Dept of Health)Breastfeeding: 1 serve (150 g) per fortnight of shark or billfish and no other fish.Source

  • New Zealand

    Check
    • Health NZBreastfeeding guide recommends oily fish including tuna with no limit.Source

  • Ireland

    Check
    • HSEBreastfeeding: no more than 2 portions of oily fish a week.Source
    Bigeye tuna
    • FSAIBreastfeeding women should not eat swordfish, marlin or shark.Source
    • HSEBreastfeeding: swordfish, marlin or shark no more than once a week.Source
What to check

Before you eat tuna.

  1. Choose canned light tuna most often

    The FDA puts canned light tuna in its Best Choices, 2 to 3 servings a week while breastfeeding, and says albacore typically contains three times more mercury than canned light tuna. A serving is 4 ounces, about the size of your palm. FDA

  2. Keep albacore and fresh tuna to your country's limit

    The FDA says 1 serving a week of albacore or yellowfin, and no other fish that week. Health Canada allows canned albacore up to 300g a week and fresh or frozen tuna up to 150g a month, with no limit on canned light tuna. Health Canada

  3. In Ireland, count fresh tuna as oily fish

    The HSE lists fresh tuna among oily fish and asks breastfeeding mothers to have no more than 2 portions of oily fish a week. The NHS says fresh and canned tuna don't count as oily fish and sets no tuna limit while breastfeeding. HSE

Questions

About tuna
while breastfeeding.

It depends on the country and the tuna. The FDA says 2 to 3 servings a week of canned light, or 1 serving of albacore with no other fish. Health Canada limits fresh or frozen tuna to 150g a month, and the NHS and Health NZ set no tuna limit.

Canned light tuna shows Check for breastfeeding in all six countries, as a Best Choices fish. Canned albacore also shows Check, with tighter limits in the US and Canada, because it typically has three times the mercury, the FDA says.

Albacore shows Check in all six countries. The FDA puts albacore in its Good Choices, 1 serving (4 ounces) a week with no other fish that week, and the CDC gives the same limit for Good Choices; and Health Canada allows canned albacore up to 300g a week.

The CDC says most fish contain mercury, which can pass from mother to baby through breast milk and can harm the brain and nervous system with too much over time. It says lower-mercury fish are a good choice.

The FDA says fish supply protein, healthy fats and nutrients such as omega-3s, vitamin D, iodine and choline that are particularly important while breastfeeding. It suggests 8 to 12 ounces a week of a variety of lower-mercury fish.

Para la lactancia, la guía de estos países trata del mercurio, que depende del tipo de atún. Doola Scan muestra Check para el atún fresco y el albacora, y Avoid para el atún patudo (bigeye) en EE. UU., Nueva Zelanda e Irlanda.

En México, la tuna es el fruto del nopal. La tuna (prickly pear) muestra No known issues en Doola Scan para la lactancia en los seis países.

Yes. Take a photo of the can, the menu or the plate, and Doola Scan checks each ingredient against your country's guidance for breastfeeding. Food scans are free, 3 a day.
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Doola shows what official guidance says; it never diagnoses. No known issues means none of these countries' breastfeeding guidance names it, not a promise that a food is safe.