Foolish Fish

On that night two foolish fish Were found garnished on his dish They’d dropped out of school For playing the fool Not to die had been their wish Now they wound up on his plate To be consumed by his date Foolishness still there Humans unaware Just wanted to satiate But that which addled fish brains Now gave those humans some pains How ‘foolish” to eat The refuse filled meat Poison in humans remains! Eileen Manassian Ghali This limerick was born out of a joke between me and a soup member about the benefits of vegetarianism. I had joked that with MAD cow, and bird FLU, soon there would be a breakout of FOOLISH fish. The person quipped that it was because the fish had “dropped out of school” and challenged me to write a poem….Well, here it is. Some facts: Fish is known to be the best type of meat to consume because of the Omega 3 fatty acids, EPA and DHA. However, care should still be taken when consuming fish. “Fish is one of the most polluted foods we eat. Unfortunately, nearly all fish and shellfish contain traces of methylmercury, which is poisonous to the brain. Mercury accumulates in fish when polluted water is filtered through their gills. The longer a fish lives, the more the mercury accumulates. Large fish eat small fish and accumulate all of the mercury that was in the small fish. This mounts up exponentially. Our tissues also accumulate the mercury of all the fish we eat throughout our lifetimes. No fish is completely free of mercury and other pollutants. If you eat fish regularly, your body is undoubtedly high in mercury. High body stores of mercury cause brain damage and memory impairment, leading to dementia. It has been demonstrated that fish contain enough mercury to harm an unborn baby or harm a young child’s developing nervous system” (Dr Fuhrman). Don’t hate me! I’m just saying……. ;)