I did some more research yesterday on mercury in food and how it ends up there. It seems that mercury is released into the environment through multiple ways. One is from the burning of fossil fuels which contain mercury. Another is from the release of products such as thermometers, batteries, fluorescent bulbs, and dental amalgams that contain mercury. Another way is from gold mining. Another is from burning iron ore, coke, and limestone in steel production. And another is thimerosal in contact lens solution and vaccines.
Once it is in the environment, it is taken up in the cells of both plants and animals. And as you move up the food chain, it can become more and more concentrated.
I found the mercury levels in some foods, including seafood as well as cow milk, chicken eggs, pork and beef muscle meat, and pork and beef liver. Here are some links to a mercury in seafood calculator and a study showing levels found in other meat and human hair:
https://www.consumerreports.org/cro/news/2014/08/how-to-reduce-your-mercury-exposure-from-seafood/index.htm#calc
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/1190840
Mercury also ends up in human breast milk, and breastfeeding mothers who have multiple dental amalgams have more mercury in their breast milk:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/9638609
So, from all of this, I have come to these conclusions:
1) I am going to continue to try and reduce my use of fossil fuels and their derivatives (such as plastic) as much as I possibly can
2) I will avoid using products with metals because of the mercury released by mining
3) I will dispose of batteries properly, not in the regular trash
4) I will avoid using contact lens solution that contains thimerosal
5) I do not normally get vaccines, but I will be sure to avoid any that contain thimerosal
6) I will avoid seafood except for small crustaceans and mollusks, as well as continuing to avoid pork, eggs, pork liver, and beef liver
I am going to take up the idea again of getting a self-sufficient homestead. I really feel the modern lifestyle is unsustainable. I had thought of getting some land and raising and slaughtering 100% grassfed sheep/lambs, since mainly lamb and mutton is all I eat. But it seems to be an expensive proposition, for one, and for another, seems difficult to do as a single woman. However, I also wear mostly 100% wool in the winter, and I know how to clean, card, spin, and weave wool. So I could even make clothes for myself, which is pretty cool!
I also wanted to mention that I am giving up on the piscivore (seafood-based) carnivore diet. I am starting to feel really exhausted when eating seafood. I don't know why. I think maybe it just doesn't have the full nutrients that red meat does, even with a little marrow fat on the side. So I'll use up what seafood I bought this last weekend, but then go back to lamb and mutton!
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