Fish literally saves lives: A North Carolina statewide public relations campaign will focus on promoting the health benefits of eating local seafood.

The campaign explores the health benefits of eating local seafood that directly affect the consumer, backed by well-documented scientific data from respected health professional and scientists.

The Science Behind Your Local Seafood uses a website and digital billboards to promote fish as among the healthiest foods on the planet, emphasizing its nourishment for both body and brain. This data will be used to educate con-sumers across generations. For example:

• Scientific Review indicates an average 7.7 IQ point gain in children whose mothers ate seafood during pregnancy compared to mothers who did not.
• A Harvard study shows eating seafood twice a week reduces risk of dying from heart disease by 36 percent.
• Eating seafood two to three times per week reduces the risk of death from any health-related cause by 17 percent, and low seafood intake contributes to 55,000 deaths each year.

Visit www.scienceandseafood.com to learn more.

The author is working with the grant funds, which are provided by the North Carolina Marine Fisheries Commission Commercial Resource Fund Commit-tee and the Funding Committee for the North Carolina Commercial Fishing Resource Fund under the Commercial Fishing Resource Fund Grant Program.