My Most Controversial Food Protocol.

Is Seafood Still Healthy in 2025? What Longevity Science Reveals

One of the more controversial stances I’ve taken in the longevity world is this: I haven’t consumed anything from the ocean or freshwater sources in ~6 years.

And it’s one of the decisions I believe is adding years to my life — despite what many people still believe about “healthy” fish.

Every week, someone asks me about the “essential” omega-3s they’re getting from seafood.

But what if those “healthy” fish are packed with compounds that accelerate aging and disease?

Digging into the real data changed my mind — and permanently changed the way I eat.

Most people think I’m crazy when they first hear this.

But the evidence tells a different story.

A 2021 Scandinavian study — conducted in a region with some of the world’s strictest seafood safety standards — found that eating just 1 weekly serving (200g) of Atlantic mackerel or herring could exceed the European Food Safety Authority’s limit for dioxins and dioxin-like compounds.

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Specifically:

The recommended intake of 200 g oily fish would lead to a slight exceedance of the TWI (tolerable weekly intake) for DLCs in the case of herring (110% of the TWI) and mackerel (104% of the TWI), whereas consumption of 200 g salmon would contribute to 73% of the TWI.
— O.J. Nøstbakken, et al. Environment International Volume 147, February 2021, 106322

The researchers also measured the levels of beneficial nutrients like omega-3 fatty acids (DHA and EPA) and vitamin D.

While these fish do provide omega-3s, the toxic burden they carry raises concerns — especially when safer alternatives for getting these nutrients exist.

The figure below shows how quickly seafood consumption can push toxin exposure above safety thresholds, even at typical eating levels.

Is Seafood Still Healthy? The Unfortunate Reality of Modern Seafood

Our oceans and freshwater sources have become chemical cocktails. Modern seafood contains a wide array of toxins that accumulate in marine life:

• Heavy Metals: Mercury, lead, cadmium, arsenic, etc.
• Industrial Chemicals: PCBs, dioxins, and flame retardants (PBDEs)
• Modern Contaminants: Microplastics, BPA, and phthalates
• Agricultural Runoff: Pesticides, herbicides, and fertilizers
• Processing Chemicals: Sodium tripolyphosphate, sulfites, and preservatives

What makes seafood particularly problematic is bioaccumulation.

Unlike land animals, fish and shellfish absorb toxins not just from their food but directly from the water — 24 hours a day.

Fish breathe it through their gills. Shellfish filter it through their bodies as they feed. There’s no escape from constant exposure.

Because of this constant contact, seafood often shows much higher concentrations of persistent metals compared to land-based foods like beef, chicken, or vegetables.

And while many people assume tuna is the main concern, contamination affects the entire food chain:

• Sardines, herring, cod, trout, and shellfish are repeatedly exposed 24/7 by living in contaminated waters.
• Larger fish concentrate even more toxins & metals by eating contaminated smaller fish (biomagnification).

Why “Smaller” Fish Aren’t Safe

People often ask if eating small fish is a safer choice. While that may have been true 20 years ago, today’s waters tell a different story.

Sardines, anchovies, and other small fish absorb the same contaminants as larger predators — through water, food, and sediment. There’s no barrier protecting them.

The problem isn’t a single exposure — it’s the steady daily accumulation.

And while sardines are often marketed as a “health food,” it’s worth remembering how most people consume them: tinned and processed, often sitting in packaging that can introduce additional chemical exposures.

Heavy Metals In Seafood

It’s not just industrial chemicals and microplastics we have to worry about.

Heavy metals like mercury, cadmium, lead, and arsenic are now widespread across nearly all seafood species.

For example:

• Tuna: High mercury levels linked to neurological and cardiovascular damage.
• Shellfish: Often contaminated with methylmercury affecting the brain and nervous system.
• Salmon and Trout: Traceable lead & chromium accumulation.
• Cod and Mackerel: Significant arsenic and cadmium levels.
• Sardines and Herring: While often praised for omega-3s, they can also accumulate copper, zinc, and other metals at concerning levels.

Shellfish are particularly vulnerable. As filter feeders, they continuously pull metals, chemicals, and microplastics directly from the water — concentrating toxins in their tissues.

Unlike some environmental toxins that break down or are quickly secreted, once heavy metals like mercury, cadmium, and arsenic enter the human body, they stay for years.

✅ So, What’s My Personal Approach for Seafood & Marine Sourced Food?

Once I understood how persistent these toxins are — and how they build up over time — I knew I had to make some changes.

Today, I avoid:

• All seafood — including both freshwater and saltwater fish
• Shellfish and crustaceans — which accumulate contaminants as filter feeders
• Sea vegetables, algae, and kelp — which can absorb heavy metals directly from polluted waters

When it comes to supplements, I make specific choices:

• Chlorella is only sourced fromlab-grown cultivation, not wild-harvested from natural waters
• Iodine is supplemented through synthetic forms, rather than relying on sea vegetables
• Fish Oil — i don’t take this. Chia, hemp and flax are my main sources of Omega 3 and I occasionally supplement with an algae-sourced DHA/EPA

I’ve also replaced marine-derived collagen in my routine:

• Marine collagen has been swapped out for bovine and porcine collagen sources.

And importantly:

This is something where I make no exceptions — not even for “special occasions” or social events.

If I’m at a seafood restaurant, you’ll find me ordering a steak and enjoying the conversation that often follows.

Why Government Standards Aren’t Enough

You might think, “But don’t regulatory agencies monitor these issues?” They do, but here’s the problem:

1. Different countries have vastly different standards
2. Monitoring focuses on individual toxins, not their combined effects
3. “Acceptable levels” are based on economic feasibility, not optimal health
4. Testing is sporadic and often inadequate
5. Standards are set for average populations, not optimal longevity

If we actually set toxin thresholds at levels aligned with true cellular health — where the only acceptable exposure was zero — the entire seafood industry would collapse.

No government is willing to face those economic consequences.

What Years of Research (and Testing) Taught Me

Choosing to eliminate seafood and marine-sourced foods wasn’t a decision I made overnight. It evolved over several years of research, learning, and gradual adaptation.

I started by cutting out marine seafood — after seeing the data on heavy metals and industrial contaminants.

Later, I extended the decision to include freshwater fish, once I understood how industrial runoff and environmental pollution affect all water sources.

Smaller shifts followed naturally: Replacing marine collagen, sourcing chlorella only from lab-grown cultivation, and choosing synthetic iodine instead of sea vegetables.

Each adjustment built on what I learned — step by step, not all at once.

One of the turning points in this journey was testing my own toxin load: Several years ago, I ran a comprehensive environmental panel — screening for heavy metals, persistent organic pollutants, and other contaminants.

Seeing data from my own body reinforced why I needed to take these exposures seriously — and fueled my deeper research into how modern environments shape aging. That experience shaped one of my core beliefs about aging:

Environmental toxins are not a side note. They are a pillar of longevity — as important to address as nutrition, exercise, and sleep.

But you don’t have to change everything overnight. Start with one step — and let the data guide your next move.

Next Steps: Your Seafood and Toxin Exposure Checklist

If you’ve learned something but are wondering how to make a change, here’s how you can start:

✅ Cut back seafood gradually

• Start by removing one seafood meal per week.
• Then, work toward reducing seafood to once a month — or once a quarter, eventually, when you dine out or are at a dinner party.

✅ Audit your supplements

• Check your current supplements for marine-sourced ingredients like marine collagen, seaweed, kelp, algae oils, and fish oils.
• If found, consider swapping to lab-grown or non-marine alternatives.

✅ Test your heavy metals load

• If you’ve eaten seafood regularly, heavy metals like mercury, arsenic, cadmium, and lead can accumulate in your body — sometimes with little sign, sometimes contributing to issues like brain fog, fatigue, or immune dysfunction.
• ​A heavy metals urine test​ shows you your current burden and gives you a foundation for smarter, targeted action

If you’re in the U.S. and looking for reliable testing options but don’t currently have access, our nationwide partnership with labs allows us to offer you a range of simple, at-home testing options — so you can get data without the usual obstacles.

You can choose from:

• Urine testing to measure your body’s current excretion of toxic metals (screening up to 21 metals, including mercury, arsenic, lead, and cadmium)
• Hair analysis to detect long-term metal accumulation stored in tissues
• Blood testing to check if critical metals are actively circulating

Explore Heavy Metals Testing Options

Small steps add up.

Testing, removing exposures, and upgrading your environment aren’t just tasks — they are investments in the decades ahead.

Optimal longevity requires optimal choices — even when those choices go against popular belief.

References

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