An Influencer Was Nearly Poisoned by Something She Ate Every Single Day
Grace Beverley thought she was being healthy. A tin of tuna at lunch, maybe two on a busy day — quick protein, easy meal, job done. The 28-year-old British content creator and founder of Tala gymwear had been doing it for a while.
Then her doctor called.
"I thought, 'Oh f--k, you never like that, I'm dying,'" Beverley said in a TikTok posted April 29.
She wasn't dying. But she was borderline for mercury poisoning — and her arsenic levels were "incredibly high." Her doctor's first question was how many tins of canned fish she was eating. When Beverley said one or two a day, the response was immediate.
"You do know you're meant to have two servings a week?"
She did not know that. A lot of people don't.
How This Actually Happens
Mercury exists naturally in the ocean and accumulates in fish tissue over time — a process called bioaccumulation. Larger fish that live longer and eat other fish absorb more of it. Tuna, being a large predatory fish, sits near the top of that chain. Every tin of tuna contains some mercury. One or two servings a week keeps you well within safe limits. One or two tins a day for months is a completely different calculation.
The same logic applies to arsenic, which can also accumulate in seafood depending on the species and where it was caught. Beverley's combination of high mercury and high arsenic points to consistent heavy consumption over time rather than a single bad batch.
Mercury poisoning isn't immediate. It builds. Symptoms can include weight changes, inflammation, hormonal disruption, fatigue, and neurological effects — which tracks with what Beverley described noticing before she got tested. She had been experiencing unexplained weight gain, inflammation, and feeling like her hormones were completely off. She went looking for answers through hormone, gastrointestinal, and blood tests. The tuna was the answer nobody expected.
The WHO notes that mercury can damage the nervous system and kidneys and that mercury salts are corrosive to the skin, eyes, and gastrointestinal tract.
Beverley is currently pregnant, which adds a layer of urgency to the story — mercury exposure during pregnancy carries serious risks for fetal neurological development, which is part of why pregnant women are specifically advised to limit tuna consumption.
Her doctor told her to stop eating fish entirely for a few months to allow her levels to come down.
The Comment Section Said Everything
The reaction on TikTok was essentially a collective panic attack from people who eat tuna every day.
"Watching this as a pescatarian who eats tuna every day," one person wrote.
"TWO SERVINGS A WEEK PARDON!!! I eat it every single day wtffffff," said another.
"Wait I've been eating canned tuna nearly every day since Jan. I need the protein."
That last comment captures exactly why this happens so often. Tuna is cheap, filling, high in protein, and requires zero preparation. For people tracking macros or eating on a budget it's a go-to. The problem is that the safe consumption guidelines — two servings per week for most adults, less for pregnant women and young children — aren't printed prominently on the tin. Most people have no idea.
Beverley's situation isn't unique either. Singer Janelle Monáe publicly disclosed she was recovering from mercury poisoning after eating a heavily pescatarian diet. The pattern is consistent — eat fish in good faith for health reasons, eat too much of it, accumulate mercury over time, find out the hard way.
The fix is simple. Two servings a week. Switch between lower-mercury options like salmon, sardines, or shrimp if you need more fish in your diet. And if you've been eating tuna daily for months and experiencing unexplained fatigue, weight changes, or inflammation — it might be worth getting tested.
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