Jane Hightower

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Dr. Jane M. Hightower is a San Francisco-area physician and medical activist who has been described as a physician to actors, rock stars and writers.[1] Her name has become synonymous with media stories about patients with extreme seafood consumption patters and ailments related to mercury.

Contents

[edit] Biography

Dr. Hightower graduated from the University of Illinois College of Medicine in 1988 and did her internship and residency at St. Mary's Hospital and Medical Center in San Francisco.[2] Today she is a doctor of internal medicine at the California Pacific Medical Center in San Francisco, where she serves as a volunteer advisor to the Center for Patient and Community Education.[3]

[edit] Research

Dr. Hightower began researching into mercury toxicity in fish in April 2003, when she published a Mercury Levels in High-End Consumers of Fish in the online journal Environmental Health Perspectives claiming that 89 percent of the patients tested in her own medical practice had blood-mercury levels exceeding the EPA's "Reference Dose."[4] The methodology of Dr. Hightower's research may be flawed in that the study only looked at the connection between high-fish diets and blood-mercury levels, not the relationship between methyl mercury and health effects. In addition, industry has also taken her to task for failing to properly document symptoms in her patient control group, as well as utilizing multiple laboratories to analyze patient blood samples.[5]

Dr. Hightower's findings conclude that people who eat more fish have higher mercury levels, and that mercury causes the symptoms she observed in patients. Issue environmental activist groups like the Natural Resources Defense Council and the Mercury Policy Project position her as an expert in mercury toxicity.[6][7] This has resulted in multiple confrontations in the media between Dr. Hightower and industry representatives, most recently when the National Fisheries Institute reacted to Dr. Hightower's latest public pronouncements by stating, "There have been no documented cases of mercury toxicity from normal consumption of seafood ever in this country."[8] Dr. Hightower's work has been criticized by industry groups and is not widely supported by the medical community.[5]

[edit] References

  1. ^ Rrines, Ben (August 5, 2005). Doctor links ailments to consumption of mercury laden fish. Mobile Register. Earth Times. Retrieved on 2008-05-05.
  2. ^ Jane M. Hightower, M.D.. California Pacific Medical Center (2008). Retrieved on 2008-05-05.
  3. ^ Center for Patient and Community Education. California Pacific Medical Center (April 10, 2008). Retrieved on 2008-05-05.
  4. ^ Hightower, Jane M.; Moore, Dan (April 2003). Mercury Levels in High-End Consumers of Fish. Retrieved on 2008-05-05.
  5. ^ a b Genesis of a Fish Story. The Center for Consumer Freedom (October 30, 2007). Retrieved on 2008-05-05.
  6. ^ Interview with Dr. Jane Hightower: My Patients and Mercury. Natural Resources Defense Council. Retrieved on 2008-05-05.
  7. ^ Reducing mercury seen as global challenge (PDF). Mercury Policy Project (December 1, 2004). Retrieved on 2008-05-05.
  8. ^ Kwon, Sue. "ConsumerWatch: What To Do About Mercury In Fish", KPIX-TV, CBS, March 3, 2008. Retrieved on 2008-05-05. 

[edit] External links