It is considered as the worst fish. Expert is sounding the alarm

Although many fish contain valuable vitamins and minerals, unfortunately, some contain substances toxic to humans. This is the case with the popular pangasius. Even though the price is tempting, it's better to leave this species on the store shelf. Why? We turn it over to the specialist.

Panga is actually a colloquial, commercial name for several species of fish. Most often, when talking about panga, we mean shark catfish. The freshwater variety comes from the Mekong River in Vietnam, which is one of the most polluted waters.

Although its relatively low price is tempting, we should not give in to it. As the professor of the Department of Toxicology at the University of La Laguna warns, consuming pangasius is not a good solution for humans.

"Consumption of this fish can expose the most vulnerable part of the population to various pollutants that may be present in this species," warns Angel J. Gutierrez Fernandez.

One of these harmful substances is mercury. Studies conducted by the World Health Organization, among others, have reported that there is too much of this element in tuna.

In the journal "Chemosphere" from 2018, we can read about the dangerous amount of mercury in pangasius. As the title suggests, an excessively high amount of mercury was detected notably in marinated pangasius. These amounts exceed European standards at a level of 0.5 mg/kg (Regulation EC No 1881/2006 of the Commission of December 19, 2006).

"Some specimens, especially in marinated form, exceed maximum permissible concentrations as defined in European legislation. A comprehensive control of mercury content in this type of fish is necessary," warned Professor Fernandez.