Aaannnnnnndddd .... this is why I don't eat sushi

[Adam]

Sushi lover's entire body left riddled with WORMS after eating contaminated sashimi

It is the most expensive - and many would argue delicious - part of a sushi menu.

But one man's love of sashimi nearly killed him after it led to his body becoming riddled with tapeworm.

The Chinese man had gone to his doctor complaining of stomach ache and itchy skin.

To his horror, scans revealed his entire body had been infected with tapeworm after eating too much sashimi - raw slices of fish.

I'm actually a reasonably adventurous eater, but sushi has always given me the screaming heebee-jeebies. This is but one reason why.

[Celeste Chalfonte]

I agree re: sushi, but not JUST sushi. "If your burger oozes red/Send it back - those worms ain't dead!"

In fact, according to Snopes:

In summary, what these images show is the aftermath of a parasitic tapeworm infection caused by the eating of raw or undercooked pork, not sashimi. And what's viewable in the x-rays are not the tapeworms themselves, but rather calcified cysts that were the end result of the infection.

Read more at http://www.snopes.com/info/news/sash...aPtT3IYRLkq.99

[phillygirl]

I agree re: sushi, but not JUST sushi. "If your burger oozes red/Send it back - those worms ain't dead!"

Wrong link.

[Celeste Chalfonte]

Wrong link.

No it's not. The quote is from that book, and I wanted to credit the author for coming up with the maxim. See also edit to original post.

[Gingersnap]

See, this is why I love technology and science. I can eat all the raw flesh I want and if there's a problem, some medico will identify it and cure it.

Seriously, I try not to worry about any of this since there are also plenty of infectious organisms that encyst and are completely impervious to cooking (some even in veggies). You might kill Mom with your mighty fire-thingy but Junior will hatch out anyway.

Luckily, it's not hugely common here and it is treatable.

[Celeste Chalfonte]

See, this is why I love technology and science. I can eat all the raw flesh I want and if there's a problem, some medico will identify it and cure it.

Seriously, I try not to worry about any of this since there are also plenty of infectious organisms that encyst and are completely impervious to cooking (some even in veggies). You might kill Mom with your mighty fire-thingy but Junior will hatch out anyway.

Luckily, it's not hugely common here and it is treatable.

Enjoy that. I'll pass. I went to breakfast with a friend in Berkeley, and they tried to serve me rare sausage. It never even occurred to me that anyone would serve pork rare, so I didn't give my usual admonition that I genuinely wanted my meat well-done. I still sent it back. WTF?? Rare pork????? Just NO.

[Gingersnap]

Enjoy that. I'll pass. I went to breakfast with a friend in Berkeley, and they tried to serve me rare sausage. It never even occurred to me that anyone would serve pork rare, so I didn't give my usual admonition that I genuinely wanted my meat well-done. I still sent it back. WTF?? Rare pork????? Just NO.

I'm pretty sure that the swine version of trichinosis is almost entirely gone from commercial pork. It may be entirely gone. The 12 cases a year in this country seem to be largely from game animals.

[Gramps]

I'm pretty sure that the swine version of trichinosis is almost entirely gone from commercial pork. It may be entirely gone. The 12 cases a year in this country seem to be largely from game animals.

Thank you.

Large commercial pork is so heavily medicated that it is almost impossible to get infected meat.

The only weak link is the smaller buying stations of the major marketers. They buy locally raised swine from small operators. They do major inspections for parasites after slaughter, but there is a small chance of an infected hog getting through.

[Celeste Chalfonte]

I'm pretty sure that the swine version of trichinosis is almost entirely gone from commercial pork. It may be entirely gone. The 12 cases a year in this country seem to be largely from game animals.

Thank you.

Large commercial pork is so heavily medicated that it is almost impossible to get infected meat.

The only weak link is the smaller buying stations of the major marketers. They buy locally raised swine from small operators. They do major inspections for parasites after slaughter, but there is a small chance of an infected hog getting through.

Doesn't change the fact that, IMO, rare pork is just nasty. Looks nasty, has a nasty texture. Kind of like raw fish. And truthfully, I can just barely tolerate medium-rare beef. I don't eat anything but vegetables raw, and I wash them really well. And don't get me started on "organic." Great, pay extra for stuff grown in untreated cow shit. I don't think so.

[Gramps]

Doesn't change the fact that, IMO, rare pork is just nasty. Looks nasty, has a nasty texture. Kind of like raw fish. And truthfully, I can just barely tolerate medium-rare beef. I don't eat anything but vegetables raw, and I wash them really well. And don't get me started on "organic." Great, pay extra for stuff grown in untreated cow shit. I don't think so.

You are Jewish right...

Seriously, as a person with post graduate studies in Micro Biology and undergraduate and post graduate studies in parasitology, I understand your concern.

You are close to my age and our parents and grandparents lived in a market where everything was local.

I worked in a local meat market/deli in SW Mo while in Hs, when I wasn't doing my 'thing in a local pool hall.

Even with the lack of refrigeration until the 20th century, people were not taking a dirt nap from tainted meat.

[scott]

Doesn't change the fact that, IMO, rare pork is just nasty. Looks nasty, has a nasty texture. Kind of like raw fish. And truthfully, I can just barely tolerate medium-rare beef. I don't eat anything but vegetables raw, and I wash them really well. And don't get me started on "organic." Great, pay extra for stuff grown in untreated cow shit. I don't think so.

[Celeste Chalfonte]

You are Jewish right...

Seriously, as a person with post graduate studies in Micro Biology and undergraduate and post graduate studies in parasitology, I understand your concern.

You are close to my age and our parents and grandparents lived in a market where everything was local.

I worked in a local meat market/deli in SW Mo while in Hs, when I wasn't doing my 'thing in a local pool hall.

Even with the lack of refrigeration until the 20th century, people were not taking a dirt nap from tainted meat.

Nope, not Jewish, although it has occurred to me I might have been in a previous life.

No, it's really about taste and texture with me. I LIKE charred cow. I like bacon and ham steaks and sausage, and I love scrapple - CRISP. All of them. Pork chops too, although I haven't had one in years - crisp. Modestly juicy beef, as long as it's not red, I like. Chicken and turkey I want damn near dry as a bone. And duck is nasty no matter what you do to it. The only venison I ever had worth eating was venison jerky, and I was about 3 sheets to the wind then, so it's anybody's guess if I would like it sober. And don't even talk to me about rabbit. If you cook it until it's unrecognizable, I'll eat lamb, unless it's fatty; then all bets are off. I like fish that doesn't taste like swamp, and I want it cooked until it's done all the way through; people here try to serve you rare tuna steaks, no thanks. I like hard and softshell crabs, but don't try serving me raw clams or oysters; I can eat them fried or made into chowder (white, not red - tomatoes and clams do NOT belong in the same bowl). I like fried squid, sauteed scallops and whatever they used to do to abalone at Mr. A's in San Diego, but HATE octopus.

And if the cows are free-range and allowed to graze where there are wild onions, give me margarine, because the butter's gonna be disgusting. There are few cheeses that I don't love, but I'd rather drink well water from Mardela Springs, MD than plain milk.

I'm a person of strong likes and dislikes. Some of my tastes have changed with maturity, and I can usually manage not to spit something I dislike into my napkin now, but that doesn't mean I'll eat another bite.

[Gingersnap]

LOL! You would die if you had to confront what I cheerfully eat.

I won't eat pink chicken or turkey because the texture is off but I'll take pork roast pink any time. I'll eat raw beef if the dish supposed to be raw but eat it rare or just on the borderline between rare and medium otherwise. It's a sin to eat hard cooked lamb or veal.

Heck, unless it's in the shell, I won't even touch a cooked through egg.

[phillygirl]

I like sushi, but I understand the risks. I like beef medium well. I like raw oysters, but not clams. Turkey and chicken should never have red or pink anywhere near it, nor should the pork. I used to love rubbery bacon when I was a kid...not so much now. Scrapple should be crisp on the outside, slightly mush in the center, but not so much. Sushi grade tuna can be rare for me. Tunafish (which is tuna salad for me) is just plain disgusting and I can not fathom how anyone looks, smells, or tastes it and doesn't barf on the spot...I know I do.

[Tom Servo]

The key to getting good sushi is going to a restaurant or sushi bar that only buys sushi-grade fish and then handles it properly afterwards. That can be hard to do in Kansas City, where any fresh fish is going to be a rarity, but in a place like San Francisco or Sandy Eggo, it shouldn't be that hard. Even in a place like where I live where sushi-grade fish can be hard to come by (stuff from the Gulf of Mexico is safe to eat cooked but not really clean enough for raw consumption) the local restaurants try to adapt by using more freezer-friendly fish or by using cooked ingredients like shrimp or eel. I'm a particular fan of eel, if it's done right.

After having rare grilled tuna steak, I can never go back to canned crap.